Escape
by Mistyeye
Summary: Escape from the boxcar isn't the end of the trouble for Rick and the others. With the help of a new friend they must face a new threat that shows the undead aren't the biggest problem out there. AU, set after the season 4 finale.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer : Sadly I don't own any of the wonderful characters, only my OCs.**

**A/N Second attempt at a WD fanfic. Hope you enjoy, please let me know how I'm doing. This is a work in progress but I will update as quickly as possible, though probably not as fast as nine lives, my other story. Thanks for reading.**

Chapter 1

They had finally escaped the boxcar after three days of captivity. The morning of the third day was only the second time they'd been bought food and water, but they were ready.

Rosita had distracted the guard with a few undone buttons and a flirtatious look as she'd leant forward to take the box of supplies from him. As soon as his eyes had wandered Abraham had pounced, grabbing his gun, using it to take out the second guard waiting by the door. In seconds they were all outside, looking for cover.

They were all tired, hungry and pissed off, the guards they found didn't stand a chance. Soon they had half a dozen guns and a couple of knives between them.

"We need to find the other prisoners, set them free" Rick Grimes pointed out to the rest of the group. "The more of us there are the more chance we got to escape"

"That depends" Daryl pointed out "If they've bin locked up without food and water longer than us they'll be weak, slow us down"

"He's right" Maggie agreed "Maybe we need to secure the place, then free them. They might be safer in the containers until the fighting's over"

Her husband Glenn disagreed with her for once "I think Rick's right, we need the numbers"

After a quick discussion they decided to free the prisoners and headed towards the containers they had heard cries for help coming from. Those with guns stood facing away from the containers, eyes searching for guards. The others stood in front, waiting for Rick and Abraham to open the heavy doors of the first container. Several people stumbled out, eyes squinting in the strong, morning sunlight. They were scared and disorientated, a few crying. Rosita, Tara and Sasha greeted them, explaining who they were, telling them they were free now. Rick moved on to the second container and unlocked the door, swinging it open.

None of them expected the snarling, cursing figure that hurled itself out the second the doors were open. It crashed into Daryl, the impact knocking him off his feet, the two of them falling in a heap to the ground.

"Where are my men, you sons of bitches?" the figure yelled, trying to land punches on the downed man. Abraham stepped in, an amused look on his face, as he grabbed the person by the arms and pulled them off the embarrassed hunter. Daryl scrambled to his feet; flinching at the pain in his body from the beating he'd received a few days before at the hands of the gang trying to kill Rick, Michonne and Carl.

Now Abraham was restraining the struggling figure they could all get a look at it. It was a woman, looking to be in her early thirties. She was wearing camouflage combat pants and a khaki vest top, a set of dog tags around her neck. Her light brown hair was coming lose from its braid and hung a few inches below her shoulders. Her face was bruised and she had a split lip and as she twisted in Abrahams grip they could see a large bruise on her back, at the base of her neck.

"Stand down soldier" Abraham barked out "We're the good guys here, just tryin' to help you out"

She stopped struggling, but he didn't release her, keeping her arms pinned behind her.

"Who the hell are you?" she spat out

"Sergeant Abraham Ford, US Rangers out of Fort Benning" He informed her.

A slight smile crossed her lips.

"Well Sergeant" she drawled "I'm Captain Natasha Jackson, Third Infantry, out of Fort Stewart. I think you better let me go now, soldier"

Abraham released her immediately, jumping back and snapping to attention.

"Yes Ma'am" he replied, following his training instinctively.

She flexed her shoulders and turned to face him.

"Stand down, I think we're past all that crap now, don't you?" she looked around at the others who were watching with interest. Her eyes scanned the rest of the survivors and she bit back a curse when she didn't see what she wanted.

"This all you found?" she asked Abraham but Rick stepped forward to answer her.

"So far, we only just got out ourselves, we're still looking" She eyed him up and down, not looking too impressed.

"Who're you?" she demanded, seeing his expression harden at her abrasive tone.

"Sheriff Rick Grimes, out of Atlanta" he replied sarcastically, mocking her exchange with the red haired soldier. He saw a brief flash of amusement in her eyes before she turned away.

"What's the plan to get the hell…" she started as a shot rang out and one of the recently freed men fell, a bullet in his neck. Everyone dived for cover.

"This is some rescue" she snapped "Didn't you secure the area first, before freeing the civilians?"

"Bastards up there, on the roof" the man she'd knocked flying was trying to see above him, to locate the shooter. She glanced across at him; he was wearing a leather vest with angel wings on the back and looked as bruised and battered as she did.

"Damn sniper" she muttered, looking around her, her mind already working on a plan.

Her hand shot out and she grabbed at Rosita's hair, pulling a hair tie from one of the girls pony tails.

"Hey" Rosita's hand came up to stop her but Tasha knocked it away.

"Need it more than you do" she was already retying her hair as she looked the young woman up and down, taking in the shorts and cropped top.

"You gotta be kiddin' me" she muttered in disbelief at the pretty woman's lack of clothing.

"Need a distraction at that end of the building" she announced, pointing away from where they were pressed against the wall, staying out of range. "I got a plan; just need the assholes attention down there." Abraham made a move towards the edge of the building but she stopped him.

"Not you, muscles, need you here for a leg up" She glanced up at the building behind them. She saw the angel wings man follow her look, and a small smirk twitched on his face. He grabbed a gun from a young Asian man and ran into the open, before twisting and firing the rifle randomly into the air in the general direction of the roof. Instantly shots were fired in return, striking the ground around the man as he dashed back against the building.

"Now" Tasha ordered Abraham and the strong man linked his hands together. She put her foot into them and he effortlessly lifted her up, until her fingers reached the frame of a first floor window. She pulled herself up, balancing on the sill, and then used a mixture of drainpipes and window frames to reach the edge of the roof. She glanced down and saw Angel wings shoot her a grin as he dashed out again, firing wildly, ducking back before the return fire could hit him. She swung herself onto the roof, keeping low and they lost sight of her. A few seconds later there was a muffled yell, followed by a thud as the sniper hit the ground, just missing Tara, causing her to give a squeal of terror.

"Hey" Tasha called down to them "Whole load of trouble heading your way. At least twenty; all armed and all looking pissed. Need to get the unarmed into a building, out the way." Everybody on the ground jumped into action. Those with guns found good spots, where they could defend the group, those without quickly found an unlocked door and hurried in all those that couldn't fight. A couple of shots sounded from the roof as Tasha took out a gunman on another building.

She was leaning forward, watching the group of approaching armed men. She was waiting for them to get closer so she could start to take them out from the roof. She heard someone behind her and span round raising the rifle she had taken from the sniper. She found herself face to face with angle wings. He was a lot closer than she expected him to be, he could obviously move quietly.

Daryl came out onto the roof and saw the woman leaning out over the roof; she had one foot resting on the low wall running around the edge of the building and was stretching forward to see. The bottom of her top had ridden up and he could see a couple of inches of bare flesh, there were more fresh bruises on the base of her spine. He guessed she'd put up a fight before they got her into the container. He managed to get quite close before she heard him and turned pointing her gun at him.

"How'd you get up here?" she demanded.

"Through the door and up the stairs, like a normal person" He smirked at her, as she lowered her gun and turned back to watching the approaching men.

"My way was quicker and the jerk was expecting someone to come through the doorway" She calmly pointed out.

"Figured this would be a good place to take some of these dicks out" he stepped alongside her.

"You any good with that thing?" she asked, nodding towards the rifle in his hands.

"I get by" he glared at her.

She grinned and dropped down, sighting the rifle, aiming at the first man.

"Let's see how good you are then" she challenged as she fired. He dropped down next to her, accepting her challenge.

The fire fight was brief and brutal. All the Terminus guards were either killed or injured. Glenn took a bullet in the upper arm and was being patched up by the army medic Bob when Daryl and Natasha arrived back from the roof. They were arguing about who had the most kills. He reckoned it was four each but she said he'd only injured one and she'd already taken out the sniper so therefore she was the winner. They stopped arguing when they reached the rest of the group.

"Who's in charge here" she asked the gathered group. Rick stepped forward.

"I guess I am" he told her "Why?"

"What's your plan now?" she asked "We haven't got all the bastards from here yet. I haven't seen Gareth or the bitch Mary, the one that's always at that damn barbeque. There's at least two more men as well. They were the ones that put me in the container in the first place. I owe them a bruise or two. There must be more prisoners as well as I haven't found my men yet"

"Your men?" Rick questioned.

"I came in with three of the men from my unit. We were the only survivors from our camp. Came here hoping it was safe and they locked us up 'bout a week ago. Took my boys out one at a time over the last few days, one a day. I never saw them again." She looked angry.

"We need to find supplies, everyone's hungry and thirsty. Then we need to find an area we can secure and keep safe until these people are strong enough to move. Then we can decide what to do. While we look for supplies we can look for your men and any other survivors." Rick laid out his plan and she nodded.

"Sounds fair enough" she agreed.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N A short chapter setting the scene and introducing Tasha. Will be longer and better soon I promise.**

Chapter 2

They spent the rest of that day searching Terminus. It was a huge compound with several buildings, including warehouses and storage rooms. They came across several other Terminus residents, most of them quickly surrendering, many happy to trade information for survival. Rick and the others were shown where the food was stored and where the belongings taken from captives were kept. Daryl and Michonne were more than happy to be reunited with their weapons of choice. They were also told there were no more captives. When Tasha questioned several of them about the whereabouts of her men the residents became evasive and denied any knowledge.

They had only managed to search about half the compound by nightfall and decided to call it a day. The search would resume first thing in the morning, when they had all eaten and got a nights rest. Using some of the food they had found Maggie and Tara managed to make a simple but filling meal for everyone. The surviving Terminus guards and residents were locked in the containers they had kept their captives in and not fed. A decision would be made what to do with them the next morning.

Once everyone had eaten their fill, people drifted off to find a place to sleep. It seemed there were several rooms, each with two, three or four beds in that were shared by the people who lived there.

Tasha was one of the last to seek a bed, as she had been searching one last building for her men. She had found her pack among the stolen items and was now more than ready to sleep. All the rooms appeared to be full and she was about to give up when she found a room with the door ajar. With a sigh of relief she kicked it open and was about to go in when she found herself staring at a large hunting knife.

Daryl lowered the knife when he saw it was just that damn army woman, Natasha, or whatever her fancy name was. She looked tired and in pain and he knew how she felt.

"Sorry" she muttered at him, totally unfazed by the knife he'd pointed at her "Door was open, thought the room was empty. Just looking for a place to get some shut eye" She turned to leave.

"Empty bed here if you want it" he growled at her, as he sat back down on the bed he'd already claimed. She glanced longingly at the small cot against the wall. In the days since the world went to hell nobody thought twice about sharing a room, or even a bed with strangers. Privacy and modesty were pretty much things of the past.

"You sure you don't mind sharing?" she asked as she edged into the room.

He shrugged "Don't bother me" he told her "'less you plannin' on sayin' up all night talkin' or somethin'"

"Aint got the energy" she reassured him as she dumped her pack on the bed and started to rummage in it. She pulled out a small box and a cloth and headed to a small mirror balanced on a table in the corner of the room. She leant forward and peered into it, frowning at the sight.

"God Damn Bastards" she muttered as she took stock of all the bruises. She twisted, trying to see the ones on her back, flinching as she stretched aching muscles. Opening the little box she emptied its contents on the table, pawing through them. She cursed again as she couldn't find what she was looking for.

Daryl peered at her from lowered eyes as he sat cross legged on the bed, checking over his crossbow. He could see the damage inflicted on her, cuts and bruises everywhere. She was looking for something as she rummaged through a small box and cursed when she couldn't find it.

He sighed "You lost somethin'?" he asked, not really interested, hoping she would settle down and keep quiet.

"Need to clean this cut on my lip but aint got any antiseptic left. Guess I'll have to make do with water and hope it don't get infected." She reached for a bottle of water and unscrewed the cap.

She jumped as Daryl suddenly appeared at her side, holding something out.

"Use this" he handed her a bottle of Whiskey "just don't use too much cos it's all I got left" She gave a nod of thanks as she took the almost full bottle.

"They didn't take this off you?" she was surprised.

"I took it off them" He told her with a small grin, "Found it in the supply room, decided to hell with sharin' it"

She laughed as she used it to dampen her cloth and dab cautiously at her lip.

"Don't blame you. Don't worry I won't tell" she winched as the whiskey stung the cut. She saw him looking at her with narrowed eyes.

"What?" she questioned.

"You said you were in that container for a week, not all them bruises are a week old, some are a lot fresher than that." He looked up at her face "Why'd they keep laying into yer?"

She shrugged "Every time they came and took one of my men or one of the other prisoners I fought them. There were these two assholes, brothers I think, they seemed to enjoy kicking the crap out of me. Said they were gonna keep me till last 'cos they wanted me to see everyone else taken first." She explained "We still aint found them yet"

He shook his head "You ever think not to fight them?" he asked, impressed with her loyalty to her men.

"Never crossed my mind not to try to help" She told him as she handed the whiskey back.

"My brother always said that women in the army were crazy bitches" he told her "Guess he was right"

She laughed out loud "You brother sounds like a wise man, what unit was he in?" she asked, genuinely interested.

"Don't really know, he got kicked out before I ever found out" He turned and put the bottle on a small table beside his bed.

"What'd he do to get kicked out?" she was searching through her pack as she asked, pulling out a large tee shirt.

"Asshole punched his commanding officer" He settled back down on his bed.

"Yeah, that'd do it." She untied the braid from her hair. "What was his problem with his CO?"

"Probably nothin'. Merle was always the problem by himself. Couldn't keep his mouth shut, always got him in trouble" He told her as he lay back, settling into the pillow but still facing her.

He heard her chuckle "Sounds like a character, what happened to him?"

"He died, couple months back" he told her shortly.

Tasha glanced over her shoulder at him, seeing his downcast eyes, knowing it was still a raw subject.

"I'm real sorry to hear that" was all she said, feeling that was all that was needed.

With her back to him she pulled off her tank top and tugged the tee shirt over her head. He glanced up at that moment to say something about Merle but stopped at the sight of her bare back. There were more bruises than he'd thought; pretty much the whole of her back was black and purple. She really was a tough son of a bitch he thought as he lowered his eyes again, not wanting to be caught looking as she changed. Quickly she wiggled out of her pants and crawled under the single blanket on the bed.

"Night" she called before rolling over and falling asleep almost immediately.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The next morning after a quick breakfast of watery oatmeal they continued the search of Terminus. They approached a large warehouse and quickly became aware of a foul smell. To one side of the building was a small yard enclosed by a high mesh fence. Inside the yard was a pile of what appeared to be human bones.

Maggie peered closer, a disgusted look on her face.

"It looks like bones and skin" she told the others. The group exchanged looks, suddenly none of them wanted to go into the warehouse. Finally it was decided that only a few of them would go in, the rest would wait outside.

Tasha insisted she went, as she was still looking for her men. Rick, Daryl and Abraham went with her. The smell was worse inside and the large area was divided into two smaller sections. The first contained a large sink which had several knives, axes and saws, all blood stained, dumped in the bottom. Hanging on hooks on the wall were several leather aprons, the type worn by butchers. All had dark stains on them.

"I got a bad feeling about this" Daryl muttered as they approached the plastic curtain dividing the area. Cautiously they parted the flaps and peered through. There were two metal tables in front of them, one empty and one with a bloody, mangled shape laid out on it. Next to it was a wheeled trolley and a large plastic container. Slowly they approached the shape on the table, gagging as the smell intensified. As they got closer they could make out what looked like large slabs of meat laid out on the trolley, the plastic container contained what looked like intestine and organs as well as bones. What was one the table became obvious as they got closer. It was the mutilated remains of a man. Most of the flesh had been removed; all that was left was the rib cage and the head.

Tasha went white and stumbled back a few paces, crashing into Abraham, knocking him into Rick. She recovered herself and reached a shaking hand out to the mess on the table, snatching something from its neck. She took several paced backwards, breathing deeply, before she held up what she had taken. It was a set of dog tags.

"I found one of my men" she said quietly "Peter Davies, 28 years old, been with me 4 years, survived Afghanistan and the world turning to shit to be taken out by a load of cannibal freaks" She turned on her heel and stalked outside. The three men followed her, wanting to be away from there as soon as possible. They found her peering through the mesh, looking at the remains in the yard.

"I guess the others are in there" she closed her eyes and turned away, strangely calm. Suddenly she set off at a run, heading back the way they had come. Exchanging worried looks Rick and Abraham set off after her. By the time they had caught up she had reached the containers where the prisoners were and was pulling open the door. She grabbed the nearest man and yanked him out, hurling him to the ground, before kicking him hard in the gut. He doubled over wheezing as she pulled him to his feet. Rick, Abraham and Maggie pointed guns at the prisoners still inside, keeping them under control but allowing them to see what was happening.

The man was swaying in front of Tasha as she stepped forward and punched him hard, breaking his nose, as he started to fall she bought her knee up and hit him in the jaw with it.

"Where's Gareth, Mary and those bastard brothers?" she yelled, punching him again. He spat blood out and looked at her with terrified eyes.

"I don't know" he stammered "Please, I'd tell you if I did, but I really don't know" She hit him hard in the ribs and he fell to the ground. His eyes went to the others in the group "Please, stop her, I can't tell her what she wants" They watched expressionlessly as she kicked him in the face, knocking him out. She turned and stalked towards the container, reaching for another man as they all tried to back away.

"Maybe you know" she grabbed one and pulled him out "I'll keep going 'till I find someone who does" Before she could start punching a woman stepped forward.

"Stop" she called "Don't hurt anyone else. Gareth and Mary won't be here anymore. As soon as trouble started they will have left. They have a farmhouse somewhere nearby. The plan was to meet up if they had to leave here. Not everyone knows about it and not many know where it is."

Tasha advanced on her "Do you know?" she demanded.

The woman shook her head "No, if I did I'd tell you, cos it means they've abandoned the rest of us, just looking out for themselves" Tasha looked her straight in the eye and decided she was telling the truth. The lucky man was shoved back inside and the injured man was thrown back in and the door was locked again.

Tasha stood there shaking, aware everyone was staring at her. Her hands were hurting and she saw her knuckles were raw and bleeding.

"Damn it girl" Abraham shouted with a laugh "Remind me not to piss you off anytime" She gave him a tight smile.

"Gonna get some gear together than start trying to find this farmhouse" she told Rick.

He nodded at her "We'll help you. I'd like a little payback as well"

She was about to head for the room with the supplies when Bob caught her arm.

"You aren't going anywhere until I've looked at those hands, you need to let me clean up those wounds" She pulled away

"You a doctor?" She asked

"Army medic" he told her. She studied him for a few seconds.

"Okay" she agreed "I got a lot of time for army medics. Brave sons of bitches" She let him lead her away.

Abraham watched her go, a smile on his face.

"I wouldn't wanna be in Gareth's shoes when she finds him" he commented.

Bob patched up Tasha's hands and persuaded her to wait until the next morning before she started her search. He told her to get a good nights' rest, eat a hearty meal and take the painkillers he gave her. Once the anger wore off, the pain of losing people close to her set in and she withdrew to the room she was sharing with Daryl. When he came in she was lying in bed, wearing her oversize tee shirt again and appeared to be asleep. He settled himself down and quickly dozed off. He awoke a while later to find her bed empty. Rolling over he realised the bottle of whiskey was no longer on the table.

"Son of a bitch, damn thievin' woman" he exclaimed, pulling himself out of bed and going in search of his drink. He finally found her on the roof, sitting on the ground, her back against the low wall, arms resting on her knees, the bottle hanging from her fingers.

"Guess you found me" she slurred, "To late to join me in a drink, cos I already drunk it" she laughed at his outraged expression.

"Damn it woman" he spat "I told you that was all I got left"

She waved the empty bottle at him "And it was mighty fine of you to share it with me" she staggered to her feet.

"You aint gonna be in any state to go lookin' for Gareth tomorrow" he told her as she swayed in front of him. "The hell you thinkin' of, drinkin' nearly a full bottle"

"Needed to dull the pain and toast old friends" she approached him carefully. "Couple of cups of coffee in the morning and I'll be fine" She tumbled forward and he caught her before she hit the floor.

"You're very strong" she purred, putting her hand on his arm "nice muscles." She squinted up at him in the moonlight "You wanna kiss me?" she invited gazing up at him.

"Darlin' you're so pissed you can hardly stand, I aint gonna kiss you" he had to admit he was tempted, she was standing there in her short tee shirt, leaning against him, looking very appealing.

At his rejection she pushed away, glaring at him "What's the matter, aint I pretty enough? You like someone else?"

He smirked at her "I like my women sober enough they know what they're doin', not so drunk they don't remember anything in the mornin'"

She stepped back "you son of a bitch" she snapped taking a swing at him "I'd be the best you ever had and you're turnin' me down" Laughing he easily caught her wrist before she made contact.

"You aint a happy drunk are you?" His laugh turned to a grunt of pain as she bought her knee up and kneed him in the balls.

"I am now" she grinned as he folded in half. Fortunately she was so drunk it wasn't a hard blow and he recovered quickly. Now he was pissed off. Quickly he moved forward and grabbed hold of her, throwing her over his shoulder. She screamed, cursed and struggled as he carried her down the stairs. Several doors popped open and sleepy faces appeared as he carried her down the corridor.

"What the hell?" Rick stepped out of his room, blocking the way, a bemused Carl peering out behind him.

"Bitch got herself drunk and tried to knee me in the nuts. Just gonna sober her up a bit" Daryl side stepped round Rick and entered the room they had found containing several showers.

"Not sure that's a good idea" Rick pointed out as Daryl shoved her into one of the cubicles, holding her in place with one hand, using the other to turn the shower on, drenching her in ice cold water.

She shrieked and fought him but he held on until his arm was too cold to continue. He let go and turned to face Rick.

"Damn near drunk a whole bottle of whiskey, then tried to smack me one, then when I…." His voice trailed off as he saw Rick's expression change, his eyes widening as he glanced over Daryl's shoulder.

"You even listening to me?" he asked, turning to follow the other man's gaze. "Oh" was all he could manage.

Tasha was still standing in the shower under the water, her hair was slicked back and hanging down her back and the oversize tee shirt she wore was soaked through. It clung to every inch of her, leaving nothing to the imagination. The two men turned away quickly.

"Think we need Maggie in here" Rick mumbled as they fled the room.

It was still dark, sometime in the early hours of the morning when the door opened and Tasha came back into the room. She was wrapped in a blanket and her hair was still damp. She stood at the side of Daryl's bed looking down at him.

"I know you aint asleep so there's no use pretending" She stared down at him until he opened one eye and peered up at her.

"I guess I owe you an apology for kneeing you in the balls and trying to hit you" she said "and a thank you for not taking advantage of what I was offering. I don't usually drink a lot, got to me more than I expected"

He rolled onto his back and stared at her "If you're waiting for me to say sorry for soaking yer you gotta long wait. It was the least you deserve" He saw a slight smile cross her lips as she turned to her bed.

"Wasn't expecting it" she told him as she threw the blanket onto the end of the bed. She heard a snigger from behind her as she revealed the short silky lilac night gown she was wearing.

"Don't say a damn word" she snarled "Maggie found it and loaned it to me, on account of mine being drippin' wet and makin' me look like an entry for a Miss Wet Tee Shirt Competition"

"If it helps" he told her with a smirk she couldn't see in the dark "You probably woulda come first place"

He heard her snort in disgust

"It don't help, now shut the hell up and go to sleep"

**Thanks for reading, hope you liked it.**

**xxxx**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Thanks to my two guest reviewers and those following this story. Hope you are still enjoying it. Please let me now what you think.**

**xxxxx**

Chapter 4

He felt like he'd only just got to sleep when something woke him. It was still dark and he couldn't see a thing, but he knew there was someone in the room. He heard a muffled groan and a scuffling sound coming from Tasha's bed and rolled onto his side slipping from his bed, realising too late that there was more than one other person in the room with them. Hands grabbed at him but he evaded them swinging a punch in the general direction they had come from. His fist made contact with something soft and he heard a grunt, followed by a curse. More hands grabbed at him, trying to pin his arms but he shrugged them off. There were at least two people trying to restrain him and he lashed out, again finding a target. He pulled his knife from his belt and slashed out with it, satisfied when it met resistance and he heard a moan of pain. Suddenly a foot smashed into the back of his knee, causing his leg to buckle and he stumbled forwards. At once hands grabbed him, holding his arms back, pulling the knife from his grip. He felt someone move to his side and his head was forced sideways, exposing his neck. He felt a slight pinprick, just above his shoulder and a strange light headed feeling came over him, before everything went blank.

It was the screams and shouts that jolted Rick from his light sleep. He stumbled from his bed, reaching for his gun. Carl sat up, eyes wide at the sounds from outside

"What's going on?" the boy grabbed his silenced gun and pulled his boots on.

"I don't know yet." Rick opened the door and peered out "Stay close" Together they headed towards the chaos. Several walkers were stumbling around, reaching for any living thing they could find. Rick fired at one as it reached for Rosita and it fell to the ground. She shot him a grateful look. Maggie and Glenn were back to back, using machetes to take down any that came too close. Abraham had Eugene behind him and was protecting the smaller man.

"How the hell did they get in?" Rick used his knife to take down another walker as Carl fired at one trying to take a bite out of a young girl from one of the containers. He blushed as she smiled her thanks and ran to hide behind him.

"We don't know yet?" Glenn yelled as he stabbed another in the head. "The guy on guard duty heard something and went to investigate, found a load of walkers in the yard. He managed to give the alarm but he got bit before anyone could help him." Rick cursed.

"I'm heading to the yard; we need to find out how they got in. If there's a breech we need to fix it. Carl, you come with me" He backed away from the others, seeing they could cope with the dwindling numbers of the undead. Once in the yard he could see the wire fence had been cut and there were several chunks of raw meat scattered nearby. It was an open invitation to walkers. Rick sent Carl to find some rope or wire to close the gap, while he cleared the rancid, stinking meat away from the fence, killing any other walkers that tried to get in.

Once the breech was temporally repaired and nothing else could get through the two of them headed back to the others. Glenn, Maggie were searching the area for any other walkers and Abraham was still protecting Eugene, while Bob checked for any injuries. The man that had been bitten while raising the alarm had died and had already been put down to prevent him from turning. Two others had been bitten, one had shot himself and the other was leaning against a wall, Rosita offering the dying man what comfort she could. Once they were sure there was no longer a direct threat they began to collect up the bodies, planning to drag them out of the complex and burn them in the morning. It was while they were doing this that Rick realised someone was missing.

"Has anyone seen Daryl?" He asked, concerned by the hunters absence.

Daryl jolted awake and found he couldn't move. His head felt heavy and for a few minutes his eyes refused to focus. Once his vision cleared he saw he was in a room very similar to those of the Greene family farm house. He was sitting on a wooden chair, wrists bound painfully behind him with plastic zip ties. His arms were then taped to the chair itself as were his legs. A rag had been stuffed into his mouth and was held in place with another rag tied around his face. He moved his head cautiously and once everything had stopped spinning he saw Tasha trussed up in the same way, still wearing the silky night gown. She was looking at him with glazed eyes, obviously still feeling the effects of whatever drug they had been given. He struggled against the ties, knowing it wouldn't help. His knee was hurting like hell and glancing down he could see it was swollen and out of shape. He guessed it was dislocated by whoever had stamped on it to bring him down.

The door opened and a familiar face walked in, followed by a woman he also recognised and two men he hadn't seen before. By Tasha's reaction he could see she knew exactly who they were. They both looked her up and down, smiling cruelly. He was satisfied to see one had a bloody bandage on his upper arm.

"We went for the soldier and found the archer as well, that was an unexpected bonus" Gareth smiled happily at them both, Mary grinning behind him.

"We are going to get Terminus back and then you are all going to pay for trying to take it from us in the first place" He informed them as he circled their helpless figures. He stopped in front of Tasha, reaching out and touching the fabric of her nightgown.

"A touch inappropriate for the end of the world perhaps, but I can see your old friends here appreciate it" He told her, indicating the grinning men. Daryl suddenly remembered what she'd told him about brothers that seemed to like beating her up and knew he was looking at them. He renewed his struggles.

Gareth pulled out a small knife and walked behind Tasha, removing the gag from her mouth, then cutting the ties binding her, before he pulled her to her feet and shoved her towards the two men.

"Show her what happens to those who hurt our own" He told them.

They advanced on her and one of them lashed out, catching her on the jaw, sending her flying to the ground. She didn't even try to retaliate, just slumped there, on her knees, supporting herself with one hand, the other rubbing her tender jaw. The brothers looked at each other, disappointment on their faces.

"Aint no fun if she don't fight back" one of them complained. Gareth reached down and grabbed a handful of hair, forcing her face up. He stared into her eyes for a few seconds.

"She's still feeling the effects of the sedative, it's slowing her down. You may have to wait an hour or so if you want her to fight back" he told them. The brothers exchanged glances, and then looked at Gareth.

"We can think of something else we can do with her, just to pass the time" he said, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. They were both looking her up and down, taking in the short outfit and amount of flesh on display.

Gareth gave them an indulgent smile and sighed

"Okay" he told them "You can go play with her in the next room, but don't break her, not yet. She needs to suffer for what she did to our friends and colleagues" They grinned at each other and taking an arm each began to drag her unresisting body from the room.

Gareth stood behind Daryl, making sure he had a good view of her being dragged out.

"Boys and their toys" he chuckled. Daryl watched helplessly as Tasha was pulled from the room. As they left she turned her head and looked straight at him. Her eyes were clear and no longer glazed and he briefly had a small pang of sympathy for the brothers. It didn't last long.

Gareth approached the chair again, standing in front of him, looking down.

"We weren't planning on finding you yet so I'm not sure what to do with you." He glanced at Mary.

"Do you have any ideas?" he asked as she strolled over to the bound man.

"He may be valuable to us in several ways" she commented, as she circled the chair.

"We could use him to force the ringleader to surrender, though I'm not sure he'd risk the whole group to save one man" She stopped pacing and stared down at Daryl as he glared back at her.

"Remember that big man that came in from Savannah?" She asked Gareth. He nodded, smiling

"Yes, he kept us going for days. What about him?"

"He told us about a camp he'd only just managed to get away from. The people there found survivors and bought them back, then forced them to work, building fences, working the fields, that sort of thing. During the night they had different uses. It was obvious what they wanted the women for but they used the men in organised fights. They would set them against each other or walkers and make bets on the outcome." She laid her hand on Daryl's bicep, "he's strong and I bet he fights well. They may be prepared to do a deal, weapons in exchange for him."

Gareth nodded, "Maybe" he started slowly "Though it sounds like they are able to get their own victims, they may not be prepared to hand over guns for something they can get for themselves."

Mary thought for a second "You may be right. There is another possibility. You remember a couple of months ago I went on that run with Rebecca and Sadie and came across that house"

"The one with the two weirdoes that you said we should avoid?" Gareth looked puzzled "What deal could we do with them?"

"I didn't tell you everything about them. We were totally safe as women there; they had no interest in us at all." Mary explained "But if any men strayed too close they were in trouble. They were so proud of what they were doing they showed me. There was a room where they were keeping a young man. What they were putting him through made my stomach turn and I eat human flesh" she smiled at Gareth, who laughed in return. Grabbing Daryl's chin she forced his face up.

"Pretty blue eyes and strong body, they would enjoy this one" she commented "They rely on people coming to them; they aren't brave enough to go out and find their own. They would probably pay well for something like this" she indicated Daryl as he tried to pull his face out of her grip, eyes blazing.

She laughed and stepped back "of course we could just keep him here and get a little payback of our own for losing our home."

Daryl flinched as her hand dropped and he felt her fingertips brushing against his thigh.

"I bet it's been a while hasn't it?" she leant closer to him, her hand moving towards his knee.

"You've not got much choice nowadays. I mean the pretty brunette, she's clearly with the Asian guy, the one that doesn't wear much is with the big soldier and I got more chance than you with the little scared looking one. "He tensed as she laid her hand flat, her palm pressing down onto his leg.

There was a thud and a muffled cry from the next room and his head snapped round towards it.

Mary laughed in delight "So that's it" she cried "You've got a thing for the soldier. You really have missed your chance there. You aren't going to want her when those two have finished"

He heard Gareth laugh "You should have made a move while you were alone in your room. It's over for both of you now"

Mary's hand moved lower and she dug her fingers into his injured knee. He bit down hard on the rag stuffed in his mouth, refusing to cry out at the pain. She twisted her hand and the pain intensified.

"I'm sure a knee isn't meant to move like that" she said as she twisted again. He tried to breathe deeply, willing away the pain but it was almost unbearable. She let go and took a step backwards, bought up her foot and kicked out. He was sure he heard something crack when it made contact.

"Paybacks a bitch, isn't it" she whispered.

"You could say that" a voice called from behind them. Mary turned quickly but she wasn't fast enough. A bullet caught her in the forehead and she was dead before she hit the ground. Tasha was standing in the doorway, a rifle in her hands. Gareth reached for his gun but she shot him in the shoulder before he could use it. As he fell back she fired again, shooting him in the leg. She strode over and kicked the gun away from him. She hit him in the face with the butt of the rifle and he fell unconscious. Quickly she bound his arms and legs with plastic ties from his pocet and used the rags he had taken from her to gag him. She left him in a heap on the floor as she hurried over to Daryl. She removed the gag and he took in a few deep breathes of fresh air. He had to admit to himself that the sight of her in the doorway, wearing a short, silky nightgown, hair loose and wild around her face clutching a large rifle was one he wasn't going to forget for a while. He saw her a fresh bruise on her jaw and marks on her arms from where she had been held by the brothers.

"You kill them bastards?" he asked her as she used Gareth's knife to cut the ties binding him. She stopped cutting and gave him a look that said it all. He nodded in satisfaction. Once he was free he tried to stand. His knee gave way and he slumped back to the chair cursing.

"Let me look" Tasha knelt at his feet and carefully lifted his leg, resting his foot in her lap. One hand cupped the back of his knee as the other gently explored the injury.

"Feels like the kneecaps dislocated" she told him "I can pop it back in, but'll hurt like a bitch. You okay with that?"

He met her eyes with his.

"Aint go no choice have I? Can't walk on it like this" He gripped the edge of the chair tightly "Jus' do it"

She placed her hands either side of his leg then leant forward, her face close to his chest as she prepared to pop the joint back in place.

"On three" she told him "One, two….." as she said two she lifted her head and planted a kiss on his dry lips and popped the kneecap back into place, making him give a short yelp of pain.

"What the hell?" he asked confused. "What happened to three?"

She smiled "Easier to do if you aint all tensed up. Do it before you're expecting it and give you a distraction and I bet you hardly noticed me do it"

He had to agree she was right. It still hurt but now the pain was manageable. She placed his foot back on the floor and stood up.

"You should be able to walk on it with help. When we get back you'll need to rest it for a few days." She held out her hand to assist him getting to his feet. He hesitated slightly then took it, letting her pull him to his feet. She slipped her arm around his waist and draped his over her shoulder, taking some of his weight.

Gareth let out a low moan as he started to come round on the floor.

"Why didn't you kill him?" Daryl asked her as they limped from the room.

"Wanna take him back with us. There's a lotta people want payback from him. Seems only right to give them the chance." She guided him into a hallway. Through another door he could see the bodies of the two brothers that had attacked her. One had an obvious knife wound and the other's head was at a funny angle. She propped him up against the staircase.

"Gotta take care of this" she told him, heading into the room and using Gareth's knife she plunged it into the head of the man with the broken neck, making sure he didn't get up again. As she approached him she glanced down at herself.

"Guess I owe Maggie a new nightgown" she commented. She had blood all over her front and the neckline was ripped, a flap of fabric folded back, near her shoulder. She glanced at the stairs.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find some better clothes" she told him.

He smirked "Don't bother on my account" he told her, deliberately looking her over. She glared at him.

"Don't you go getting' any funny ideas now. That kiss back there don't mean we're engaged or anythin'" she stomped off.

"Hell, I aint the marryin' type" he joked "More a love 'em and leave 'em kind"

She shook her head at him, a smile on her lips.

"Well aint you just the perfect catch?" she grinned.

He insisted on coming upstairs with her, telling her it wasn't a good idea for them to split up.

"You just want me to look out for you, don't you" she teased. "Don't wanna be left down there all by yourself" He pushed past her and limped over to a large bed, settling himself down as she searched the closets for something to wear before disappearing into the bathroom to change. After a few minutes she came back, buckling the belt on a pair of jeans several sizes too big. She'd had to use a knife to make an additional hole as the belt was too big as well. She had also found a pair of walking boots that she'd padded with extra pairs of socks and an enormous tee shirt that she had knotted at the waist.

"Just my luck to find a house with Mr above average waistline to be livin' here" she muttered. She handed Daryl a small bottle of painkillers and a glass of water. "Found these, better take a couple, should help the pain and the swellin'" he swallowed a couple of the tablets and started to get to his feet. They both froze as they heard the sound of an engine heading towards the house.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Thanks to Emma Kellog for the lovely review. I'm glad you are enjoying it. I'm enjoying writing Tasha and she's about to get even tougher.**

**Thanks also to the Guest reviewers and all those following Escape and those making it a favourite. It really makes my day to get a positive sign that people are liking my self indulgent writing.**

**Chapter 6 will be up today as well.**

**Enjoy**

**xxxxx**

Chapter 5

Tasha peered out of the bedroom window, staying out of sight. A car was pulling up outside and as she watched four men and a woman got out. All were armed and were looking around cautiously.

"You think anyone else made it here?" The woman asked as they approached the door.

"Shit!" Tasha swore as she ducked back "it's more survivors from Terminus, this must be the farm that woman mentioned" she grabbed the rifle and checked how many bullets were left, regretting not collecting the other weapons from downstairs.

"Only two rounds left, five just arrived. We gotta problem" she glanced around the room, looking for an answer. Daryl limped over to the window and slid it open.

"I'll lower you out, you take the car and get the hell outta here" he told her "Come on, we aint got long before they figure it out and get up here." She shook her head

"We both go out the window and take the car" she told him firmly as she leant out, judging the distance to the ground.

"Aint happening, not with this knee" he stepped up behind her "Both know it'll slow us down and neither of us'll get away. Least this way you get out" Daryl grabbed her and lifted her, scooping her up and shoving her legs through the window. She grabbed at the window frame.

"No, I never leave a man behind, it's my units motto" she cried as she struggled.

"I aint in your unit" he told her, leaning further out, letting go of her legs, just holding her arms. He lowered her as far as possible and then let go. She fell a few feet and landed in a crouch, glaring up at him as he slammed the window shut. Quickly she ran for the car and climbed in.

Daryl picked up the rifle and aimed it at the door. It wasn't long before he heard people running up the stairs. They searched the other rooms and finally threw open the door of the room he was in. He fired and the first man in fell. He fired his last round but it only wounded the next man. The others poured into the room once they realised he was out of ammo. He used the rifle as a club but it was no use. He heard a shot and felt a sharp pain in his side. He lost his grip on the rifle and several pair of hands pinned him down, raining blows on his already battered body.

Tasha was in the car when she heard the first two shots. Her heart sank when she heard the third a few moments later. She'd hoped they'd wanted to take him alive and that she would have time to plan a rescue. Now it looked like it was going to be a revenge attack. She found a hand gun with four rounds in it in the glove compartment and tucked it into her waistband. She slipped from the car and headed towards the house. She'd never left a man behind and even if he had been killed she owed it to him to make sure he didn't turn and to return him to his friends for a decent burial.

There was a lot of shouting and crashing from inside the house and she heard Gareth yell out.

"Bring him in here, I want to see him suffer"

Sliding along the wall she peered through the window. Two men were dragging Daryl into the room they had left Gareth in. His injured leg was dragging behind him and she could she blood on his shirt from a wound just above his hip. He was still defiantly glaring at the people surrounding him and refusing to answer any of the questions they were yelling.

"Where is she?" Gareth demanded "Where did the soldier go?"

"Told yer, don't know, don't care" Daryl spat blood out as he tried to stand tall "Bitch ran out on me, Said my knee would slow her down and left" A man stepped up to him and hit his injured side with the butt of his rifle. Daryl swung round a managed to get a punch in, knocking the man back. Another hit him in the small of the back, driving him to the ground.

"You're lying. Her type don't leave anyone behind" Gareth snarled at him "where is she?" When he didn't answer the man who had hit him stepped forward again, this time stamping on the already hurt knee. Daryl couldn't help a howl of pain. Tasha ran round to the back of the house and found an unlocked back door. She slipped in and saw the woman from the car in the kitchen. She was calmly making a meal, ignoring the sounds from the front of the house. Her rifle was leaning up the table and she had a hand gun in a holster at her hip. Quietly Tasha crept up behind her. Before the woman was even aware she was there she clamped her hand over her mouth and drove her knife into the woman's throat. As her life gurgled away Tasha lowered her to the floor then shoved her blade into the woman's head, making sure she didn't come back. She collected the guns and headed for the front of the house.

One of the men was just leaving the room and heading upstairs. Waiting a few moments Tasha followed him. She waited until he came out of the bathroom then stepped up behind him grabbing his head, twisting it violently. The was a loud crack and his body went limp. She used her knife to do what was necessary. She peered into the room they had been in earlier. One of the men from the car was on the floor. Daryl had clearly made the most of his remaining bullets as she found another of the men lying in a bed, a wound in his chest. She finished him off with her blade.

As she returned downstairs she pulled out her handgun, checking the safety was off. She stormed into the room and shot the remaining man at point blank range. Gareth was sitting on a chair in front of her, face blank with terror.

"I was gonna take you back to Terminus alive" she told him as he tried to get to his feet "But I changed my mind" she fired, the bullet passing straight through the top of his head, knocking his body from the chair.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Tasha dropped to her knees at Daryl's side. His face was white and his breathing harsh. Carefully she rolled him onto his back and lifted his shirt, checking the wound. It looked like the bullet had only grazed him; there was a deep gash along his side, still oozing blood. She untied the knot of excess fabric in her tee shirt and tore a strip off. Quickly she wadded it up and pressed it to the injury. She pulled Gareth's belt off and used it to hold the makeshift bandage in place. Daryl's eyes flickered open and his eyes met hers.

"You were suppose to go" he groaned, his hand reaching for his side.

"Told you I never leave a man behind" she caught his hand so he couldn't dislodge the makeshift bandage. "Leave it alone, it's not that bad" she scolded. He glared at her and tried to sit up, winching in pain.

"Keep still" she pushed him back down. "Gotta check your knee again" She moved so she was able to reach and gently ran her fingers over it.

"Feels like it's dislocated again" she told him "Twice in one day sucks" She glanced at him, seeing he was half sitting, resting on his elbows staring at her intently.

"You want me to put it back in or you wanna wait 'till we get back and let Bob do it? He's the Doc"

He managed to smirk at her "If the distractions a kiss I'd rather it was you than Bob" he managed to joke.

Tasha pulled a face at him, her hand resting on his knee as she moved closer. She leant in towards him, her free hand touching his cheek. He sat up straighter, looking unsure as he moved forward slightly. She smiled and her lips brushed against his. As he cautiously returned the kiss she twisted her hand and his kneecap popped back into place again. It hurt more this time and he gave a surprised yelp of pain, pulling away from her.

"Damn it, woman that hurt!" he cursed her.

"Guess the kiss wasn't as good this time" she smiled as she got to her feet "Can't believe you fell for it again" she held out her hand to help him up again. He allowed her to assist him and this time they headed slowly outside. Once they were in the car she pulled away from the farmhouse and headed down the track until she found a gateway leading to a paved main road.

"How the hell do we find our way back, I got no idea where we are" she looked both ways at the long, straight road. Randomly she turned left and they drove for several miles before finding a road sign.

"Know any of those places?" She asked as she stared blankly at the list of towns.

"Head to Macon, think that was close to Terminus on the maps we saw on the tracks" Daryl was leaning back in his seat, clearly in a lot of pain. She turned at the next junction following the signs to Macon. Glancing at Daryl she saw he was pale, flinching in pain every time the car went over a bump, the wound on his side was still bleeding; the makeshift bandage she wrapped on it soaked red. She accelerated the car, racing down the road much faster than the marked speed limit. As they raced around a bend she swore out loud and stamped on the brakes. The car slid sideways to a stop and she looked in horror at the herd of walkers approaching them. The road was completely blocked and she couldn't see an end to the hoard of undead heading towards them. She slammed the car into reverse and backed away before spinning it round and racing back the way they had come, away from where she wanted to go.

It was several hours and many detours later that they arrived back at Terminus. She had needed to stop and syphon fuel from several abandoned vehicles as they had almost run dry. There had been another herd on the road which had caused another huge reroute and added several miles to the trip but finally they were pulling up at the gate. She opened the door and jumped out shouting at the men minding the entrance to let them in. The men looked at her blankly then one called over his shoulder. Finally a familiar face arrived and Maggie flung open the gates.

"Where's Bob?" Tasha demanded. Maggie took in the situation and ripped open the back door of the car, throwing herself in.

"Drive down there" she ordered. Tasha followed her directions and they drove deeper into the compound finally arriving at the building they had been using as a main living area.

Maggie leapt out, yelling for Bob as Tasha ran round and opened the passenger door, helping Daryl out. With an arm around his waist and his arm draped across her shoulder they limped towards the door. Several people hurried out and helped them inside. Daryl was set down on a table and Bob started to unwrap the gunshot wound on his side. Tasha filled him in on what injuries he had received.

He nodded, and then looked quickly at her. "Don't you go anywhere, looks like you need checking over too" he ordered. She nodded back then moved away, giving him space to work. Maggie and Tara took her arms and guided her to a chair, handing her a bottle of water and some tinned soup. She realised how hungry she was and tucked in. Once she'd eaten Rick approached her.

"What happened, where the hell did you go, why didn't you tell anyone?" He fired questions at her rapidly and she felt her temper rising.

"Kinda hard to tell anyone anything when you're drugged unconscious and trussed up" she snapped.

"Who was on watch last night?" she demanded "didn't they see four armed men take two people out of this damn place and bundle them into a car?" Her anger faded as exhaustion hit her. It had been a long couple of days.

Rick sat down next to her; "I'm sorry. Someone cut through the fence and let a whole load of walkers in. They must have done it as a distraction. We lost three men" he told her softly "Tell me what happened to you." She told him the whole story, watching the range of emotions crossing his face, anger changing to concern.

When she finished her covered her hand with his. "Thank you" he told her sincerely, "Thank you for going back for him, you don't know him, you didn't have to"

Tasha looked him straight in the eyes "I never leave a man behind" she said simply.

Rick told her that they had actually got a search party together and had been searching the complex for them. It had been when he realised they hadn't been seen during the walker attack that they knew something was wrong. He'd gone to their room and found it empty.

"We couldn't think where the two of you could have gone, didn't occur to us someone could've taken you." He told her.

"You knew we were up for searching for Gareth and the farm. You think we'd just up and go off for a moonlight stroll or something?" she snapped at him, surprised when he didn't meet her eye and actually blushed at her question. It was Michonne who stepped forward and replied.

"We thought that after last night the two of you had gone off somewhere and …." She hesitated, searching for the right words "….hooked up or somethin''"

Tasha was speechless for a second, when she found her voice again she didn't know whether to laugh or yell.

"You thought the two of us were getting together?" she looked around at all of them; no one looked back at her. A thought struck her and she turned to face Maggie "That why you gave me that damn silky thing?" Maggie looked sheepishly at her and tried a small smile.

"Found it in our room and thought it might help things along." She admitted "Thought you two would be good for each other"

"He wasn't bothered about it, but two of the guys that took us loved it" she snapped, then felt bad when she saw the guilty look on Maggie's face.

"But if I hadn't been wearing it they wouldn't have taken me to another room and I wouldn't have been able to kill them. We probably wouldn't have got away." She confessed.

Bob approached them, having finished checking Daryl over.

"He's pretty battered, got a couple of cracked ribs and I need to put a few stitches in the wound on his side. Tasha managed to relocate his kneecap but dislocating it twice in one day has kinda messed it up, I think there's some torn ligaments. I'm going to need to strap it and he'll have to stay off his feet for several days." The medic gave a nervous smile.

"Anyone want to back me up when I tell him that?" He asked hopefully.

Everyone exchanged glances, no one wanted to tell Daryl he wouldn't be able to move for several days. Tasha shook her head, getting to her feet with a sigh.

"Pathetic" she muttered as she strode over to Daryl who was sitting on the table, looking pissed off.

"Doc says you gotta stay off that knee for at least a week" she told him bluntly. He opened his mouth to protest but she interrupted him.

"You don't and it'll never be right again. Don't be a dumb ass tryin' to be all macho 'bout it. Stay off it and get it better quick. These people need you to hunt for them, too damn useless to do it for themselves." She saw the ghost of a smile cross his lips "you aint doin' it for you, you're doin' it for them" He gave her a barely noticeable nod and she smiled sweetly at him.

"Also the Doc needs to strap it up and do a few stitches in your side" she finished. As Bob approached she turned and stalked from the room.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

She collected a clean top and her combat pants from her pack and headed for a shower. Once she was clean and wearing her own clothes again she felt a lot better. She headed to her room and found Daryl was already there, propped up in bed with several pillows behind him. His knee was strapped up and he was wearing a clean shirt, a fresh bandage over the wound on his side. Rick and Glenn were sitting either side of the bed, keeping him company. They both stood when she entered and started to make excuses to leave. Tasha shrugged her shoulders at them.

"Don't have to leave 'cos of me" she told them. She pulled out her hairbrush and brushed the tangles from her damp hair. When she finished she headed out the door.

"Leave you to it" she told them as she left.

"Hell, that woman's a handful" Rick muttered "got an attitude a mile high and a mouth to match"

Glenn laughed "Don't tell Maggie but I like her, she's ballsy and loyal. She did go back for Daryl when she could've left him"

"Yeah" Daryl muttered "She came back after I dropped her out a first floor window and told her to get the hell away"

Glenn laughed again "You dropped her out a window?"

"Only way to get her out the house and away from those assholes" Daryl told him "God, she was pissed when I let go and she hit the floor"

Even Rick laughed then, he didn't really like her but had to admit she had balls.

Tasha wandered around the compound, she didn't really have anywhere to go but didn't want to stay in the room with the three men. She couldn't understand how this group had survived as long as they had. They were disorganised and made bad decisions all the time. She could tolerate Abraham, he had army training and had a mission in mind, even if it was taking the creepy weird guy, Eugene, to Washington DC. She thought Daryl was an ass but at least he could take care of himself, he was clearly a survivor. He had also risked himself for her so she felt she owed him. She found herself near the gates and decided to walk the perimeter, checking the fences.

She was about halfway round when she saw a glimpse of movement in the trees. It was too stealthy for a walker, ducking back when she drew nearer the fence. She was bored and decided to check it out. She walked further along the fence until she was out of sight of where she saw the figure. Quickly she climbed over the high wire fence and ran into the trees making her way back. Ahead she could see a large man peering at Terminus from behind a tree. She pulled her gun and crept closer. Just behind him she saw a slim, short haired woman holding a bundle in front of her. The bundle suddenly moved and she heard a small whimper. It was a baby. The whimper turned into a full blown wail as the woman tried to hush the child.

"Carol" the man whispered "You gotta keep her quiet, the walkers back there'll hear her"

"I'm trying" the woman replied "She's hungry , you know we ran out of formula yesterday"

The man nodded "I know. You think we should just take a chance and go in here. Surely they aint gonna hurt a baby"

Before the woman could reply several walkers lurched out of the trees, heading straight for them. The woman backed away, unable to defend herself while she was holding the baby. The man ran in front of her using a hammer to kill the undead. He was badly outnumbered and was being overwhelmed.

"Run!" he shouted "head for the gate, get them to let you in" The woman shook her head.

"No"" she cried "I can't leave you"

"You gotta" he told her "You gotta save Judith"

Tasha had heard enough. She stepped forward pulling her knife from her belt. She stood next to the man and started taking out the walkers.

"Start working back towards the gate" she told them "Don't worry, it's safe here now. You'll be okay"

Between them they finished off all the walkers as they edged back to the gate. As they approached it Tasha was relieved to see Rosita on duty. She frowned as she opened the gate and let them in.

"When did you go out? I didn't see you" she questioned.

"Went out over the fence round there. No way you could see from here" Tasha reassured her. Despite her earlier misgivings about the pretty young woman's appearance Rosita had proved herself time and again in the previous few days.

"Is that a baby?" she asked in disbelief, looking at the bundle in the woman's arms. The woman smiled and pushed the blanket to one side, revealing the baby's chubby face.

"She's beautiful" Rosita breathed, touching the soft cheek with her finger.

"Come on" Tasha demanded impatiently "I'll take you to meet the others"

They followed her to the living area. Maggie was there with Tara and Sasha.

"Tyreese?" Sasha gasped when she saw the large man. She ran into his arms "I thought you were dead" He held her back, tears in his eyes.

"Thought you were dead too. Thought I'd lost my big sister, should of known you'd make it" He held her tightly.

Maggie gave a cry of delight and threw herself at the woman, hugging her close.

"Carol, you made it and Judith too. Rick and Carl won't believe this" she sobbed happily.

"You want me to go get Rick?" asked Tara "I'll get Carl from his room too" The young woman ran off to find them.

Tasha watched from the side of the room as Rick and Carl entered and saw Judith. They both ran to her, clinging to her, tears in their eyes.

"Thank you, both of you" Rick choked out as he held his daughter close "I'll never be able to repay you for this"

Carol smiled at him. "We wouldn't be here if she hadn't come over the fence and saved us from a load of walkers" she said, nodding at Tasha.

"That's true" Tyreese agreed "Came running out of the trees, with her knife in her hand like some damn super hero"

Rick turned to Tasha "I guess I owe you as well" he told her "Thank you"

She shrugged and gave him a small smile. "Just did what anyone would do in the same situation" she told him.

"I'm glad you got your family back, but I'm gonna turn in now. It's been a long day" she nodded a good night and left the room.

She had only just entered her room and greeted Daryl when there was a tap on the door. She opened it and saw Rick and Judith, Carol standing behind them.

"Sorry, I know you wanted to sleep but we just had to show Daryl what we got tonight" he explained. With a sigh she stepped away from the door and let them in.

Daryl's face lit up in a genuine grin when he saw the baby.

"Ass kicker!" he exclaimed as Rick held her out. He took hold of her and chuckled when she pulled at his long hair. "Damn she's got big"

"Try carrying her around in a sling all day" said a soft voice, as Carol approached the bed. Daryl looked at her in surprise,

"Should of guessed if anyone was gonna save her it'd be you" he quipped. Carol sat on the bed next to him.

"What have you been doing to yourself now" she asked, her hand reaching up to trace one of the bruises on his face. "Leave you for a few days and you get yourself into all sorts of trouble" She reached forward and embraced him. Tasha noticed that he didn't return the hug and just looked uncomfortable at the contact. Finally Carol pulled away and faced Tasha.

"You two share a room?" she asked, with a knowing smile.

Tasha nodded "Yeah, we do. What of it?"

"Nothing" Carol smiled at them again "least it means he's got some company if he's going to be stuck in here for a while"

They both frowned at her, not getting why she was so happy they were sharing a room.

Rick spoke up, taking Judith back from Daryl.

"Come on Carol, we need to let Daryl get some rest. Tasha's been hurt as well. They both need to sleep" He ushered the woman out of the room.

Carol took a last look at the two of them over her shoulder and gave Daryl a knowing wink, before the door closed behind her.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N Just a filler chapter. More action soon.**

**Enjoy**

**xxxx**

Chapter 8

Tasha woke to the sound of him trying to get out of bed.

"What you doin'?" she demanded "You know you aint suppose to get out of bed"

"Bored and can't sleep" he grumped childishly. "Thought I'd go see who else is awake"

"I am now, so you can talk to me" she told him. She swung her long legs out of bed and reached for her pack. She delved into it and pulled something out before strolling over to his bed,

"Found this earlier, want some?" she held up a bottle of rum.

He frowned at her "Aint as good as whiskey but I guess it will do" She opened the bottle and took a swig before passing it to him. He took a long mouthful.

"You gonna sit down or I gotta keep lookin' up at you?" he demanded, scooting over on the bed and making space for her to sit next to him. She sat on the edge of the bed and had another swig from the bottle.

"Didn't take you for the daddy type" she commented, referring to his happiness at seeing the baby earlier.

"Lil' asskicker's special. Her mama died givin' birth and her daddy went off the rails for a while so we all had to pull together to keep her safe. She's kinda everyone's baby" He explained to her. She smiled in the darkness.

"You aint as tough as people think are you?" she teased. They passed the bottle backwards and forwards a few more times, both were tired and injured and hadn't eaten much over the last couple of days. Bob had also made them both take some fairly strong pain killers so they were both feeling pretty light headed and relaxed. Tasha realised she had gone from sitting on the edge of the bed to lying down next to Daryl. He was on his side and she could feel his breath on her cheek as she lay on her back next to him. She turned her head to face him.

"I should go back to my bed" she told him, as she moved to sit up. He put his hand on her stomach, stopping her.

"Why?" he asked, his voice slightly slurred.

"Cos staying here aint a good idea" she managed. He hooked his arm around her waist, pulling her onto her side facing him.

"Seems a good idea to me" he mumbled, his hand sliding up her back and tangling in her hair. She put her hand on his chest, trying to make some space between them but he rolled onto his back, pulling her with him so she ended up lying on top of him. His hand was still tangled in her hair and he pulled her head closer to his. She gazed down at him, brushing his hair away from his face and staring into his intense blue eyes.

"What the hell" she thought "It's been a long time" she lowered her head and kissed him gently. His grip tightened on her hair and his other hand rested on her back, pushing her closer. The kiss became more heated and her hands started to explore his chest. She moved her lips from his mouth and started trailing kisses along his jaw and down his neck. She was about to move back to his mouth when a noise stopped her. She looked down at his face and saw his eyes were closed and he was snoring gently. The combination of pain relief, alcohol and exhaustion had taken its toll. She gave a rueful smile and slumped down next to him, quickly falling asleep.

When he awoke the next morning he was thirsty and had a headache. He also couldn't move his left arm and leg. When he could open his eyes he saw Tasha draped against him, her leg was wrapped over his and her body was tucked alongside him. He remembered passionate kisses and nothing else. He frowned wishing he knew how far things had gone. They were both still fully clothed so he hoped that meant things has stayed decent.

Tasha groaned as she woke to an aching head and a parched mouth. She realised she wasn't alone in bed and that it wasn't her bed. She was snuggled against Daryl, her leg entwined with his, her body pressed against him. She risked a glance and found him staring at her a confused look on his face.

"Um" she started awkwardly " I can't remember last night" she shot him an embarrassed look "Did we…, I mean how far….." her eyes dropped from his.

"I don't think we did anything, just kissin'" he told her "but I don't remember for sure."

"We both still got clothes on, that's good right?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, that's what I thought" he replied.

They realised at the same time that they were still tangled together and separated quickly. Tasha rolled off his bed and headed for her own.

"Remind me never to drink again" she muttered "'specially when I'm takin' medication"

There was a light tap on the door and it opened to reveal Carol.

"Morning" she said happily as she entered the room, holding a tray with a plate and a cup on it.

"Thought I'd bring you breakfast being as you can't get up yet" She told Daryl, then flashed a smile at Tasha.

"I thought you'd be up by now, so I didn't bring any for you. Let me just go get you something." She made to leave the room but Tasha stopped her.

"You don't have to look after me, I can get my own breakfast" she snapped as she gathered her clothes and headed out the door, towards the showers. She popped her head back into the room.

"Thanks for offerin' though" she gave an awkward smile and left the two of them alone.

Daryl was eating his breakfast when he felt Carols stare on him. He glanced up and saw her looking, an amused expression on her face.

"So, you and Tasha" she teased, laughing as he choked on a mouthful of food.

"It aint like that" he spluttered.

Carol bent down and picked up the empty rum bottle from the floor at the side of the bed.

"Of course it isn't" she said with a grin. He felt his face go hot as thoughts of drunken kisses slipped into this mind.

Carol laughed in delight; of course she'd noticed his reaction.

"You do like her then?" she pushed. "You should, she reminds me of you when we first met in the quarry. All mouth and attitude but heart in the right place. I know she's already risked herself for you and the group. Me, Tyreese and Judith wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her." She gave him a sly smile "and she's a real stunner" She collected his empty plate and cup.

"Of course, there's a few other folks noticed her. If you're interested you better make a move before you miss out" With that she left the room, leaving him confused and unsure.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N Longer chapter this time. Bit slow but the new threat will be here soon.**

**Emma Kellog - Thanks for reviews. Had to bring baby Judith back, Rick needs some happiness every now and again.**

Chapter 9

It was several days since the incident with Gareth and the others from Terminus and Tasha was now fully recovered. Along with Glenn, Tara and Michonne she had gone on a run to a nearby Walmart. They had already stripped it clean of foodstuff and day to day essentials but were now looking for clothing and bedding, as well as other household items.

Michonne and Tara headed for the kitchen department, armed with a list of the items required by Carol and the other women who prepared the food on a regular basis. Glenn and Tasha set off for the children's wear section. Judith was growing fast and needed pretty much everything. They both stared blankly at the racks of tiny clothes and other equipment.

"You know what we need?" Tasha asked hopefully

Glenn gave her a small grin "I got a list from one of the women whose got a toddler of her own, she told me what we should get and what sizes."

She gave him a relieved look "Glad one of us had enough sense to think of that" Using the list they soon had a couple of bags full of suitable clothes and toys. They had turned towards the women's wear section when they heard a scream.

"That's Tara" Glenn dropped the bags and ran towards the sound, Tasha close behind. They found Michonne and Tara surrounded by walkers, side by side, their backs against the wall as Michonne used her katana to hack through them and Tara stabbed frantically with her knife. Glenn and Tasha joined the fray and between the four of them they made short work of the threat.

"Damn things were in the store room back there" Michonne explained, shooting a disapproving look at Tara "Dumb girl here opened the door without checking first." Tara looked ashamed.

"I'm sorry" she muttered "I'm not used to doing runs like this. I didn't think" Michonne started to lay into her again but Glenn interrupted.

"It don't matter, it's over, no harm done and Tara knows better for next time" He gave her a gentle smile and took her arm "why don't you come with me and help find some clothes for the women. I'm gonna need all the help I can get. We'll let Michonne and Tasha finish here"

Tasha watched as he led the grateful young woman away from the angry warrior. She tugged at her disgusting, filthy, ripped combat pants.

"Anyone'd think he didn't want my help with that" she muttered, ignoring the amused look from Michonne as they gathered the rest of the items on the list. After a brief stop to the men's department at Tasha's request they loaded up the car and returned to Terminus.

After several days of bed rest Daryl was glad to finally be up and about. He was with Rick and Maggie when the group returned from the run. Glenn was the first out of the car, eyes searching for Maggie. A big grin lit up his face as he headed straight for his wife, giving her a passionate kiss.

"Give us a break" Tasha complained as she slipped from the car. "We've only been gone a few hours" She winked at Carol and started to unload the trunk. Daryl noticed she was wearing a large overcoat that was several sizes too big for her slight form. She turned with a smile as Abraham wandered over, pulling a face at the still entwined Maggie and Glenn.

"Hey big man" she called to him "Got something for you" She let the oversized coat slide down one arm, glancing suggestively over her shoulder. "Thought you might like this" she purred as the coat slid off completely, revealing the tight fitting tee shirt and clinging jeans she was wearing.

Flustered Abraham didn't know what to say. Several others were watching, grins on their faces at the sight of the usually brash sergeant now speechless. Tasha walked towards him,

"Couldn't fit it in the trunk so had to sit on the damn thing" she laughed as she handed the coat to him, "Heard you complaining 'bout being cold the other day. Thought this would help." He grabbed the coat, giving her a relieved look.

"Weren't sure what you were offering for a minute there" he told her.

She slapped his arm, "Hell aint you got your hands full with Rosita?" she scolded him. She grabbed a drink and walked over to a table where several men were seated. They were a group of newcomers that had arrived the day before. They were made up of hunters and trackers and had been welcomed to the group. The more hunters the better as there were now so many mouths to feed.

Daryl watched as Tasha leaned towards the men, her hands gesturing as she spoke to them. When she finished talking, she stepped back and watched them expectantly. There was silence for a few seconds then they all exploded in laughter. Wiping his eyes one of them, grinned up at her.

"Damn it" he spluttered "Where'd a nice girl like you hear a joke like that?"

She grinned at them as she strolled off "who said anything about me bein' a nice girl?" she asked. Daryl couldn't help but notice every male eye was on her as she exited the room.

"Damn, she sure is sexy" a voice beside him commented. Turning to look he was surprised to see Tara; the young girl Glenn had found when they escaped the prison.

She saw him looking. "What?" she questioned "Just 'cos I don't stand a chance, don't mean I can't still appreciate what I see" She turned and walked away from him as Carol approached, a knowing look on her face.

"Told you, folk are noticing her. You're gonna lose out if you don't do something soon" she told him.

He glared at her "You gotta learn to stop interferin' in others peoples business" he snarled at her "Why'd you think I care who notices her?" He stalked off before she could say anything else.

"What was that about?" Rick asked. Carol smiled at him.

"Just Daryl being Daryl" she told him "not doing what he should for himself, as usual"

Rick looked at his friends retreating back, seeing the tension there, knowing he was angry by the way the door slammed behind him.

"You trying to match make?" he glanced at Carol's thoughtful expression "Not sure that's a good idea" Carol just gave him a sweet smile as she walked away.

Daryl stalked back to his room. He was pissed but didn't know why. He didn't care who looked at Tasha. He shoved open the door and marched in. She was there, unpacking her back pack.

"Found a few new clothes" she told him, with a grin "Those camouflage pants of mine were just held together with dirt and walker guts" She gave a twirl in front of him, "seems weird to be in civilian clothes again" she joked.

She frowned when his only reply was an unintelligible grunt.

"What's your problem?" she asked, watching as he grabbed his pack and started stuffing his few belongings into it.

"Aint gotta problem, just wanna find somewhere else to sleep" he muttered as he closed up his pack and slung it over his shoulder, heading for the door.

"Why?" she asked bluntly "You worried 'bout what happened the other night? That was just booze and pills, aint gonna happen again. Think yer innocence's gonna be safe with me"

He glared at her, "Saw how you was with them new jerks, won't be long before yer wanting a place to bring one of 'em for a bit o' fun." He pulled the door open.

Before he could leave Tasha jumped forward and slammed the door shut, leaning against it. She glared at him, eyes blazing in fury.

"Yeah, that's right" she snarled at him "I'm gonna be bringing guys back here all the time. Was just gonna ask you to shove a pillow over yer head and not look" She ran her fingers through her hair, hands shaking in anger.

"What the hell you take me for, some kind of easy slut?"

He didn't meet her eyes "I seen the way they all look at you" he mumbled "Hell, even that Tara girl was eying you up earlier"

"I only bring girls back when I'm real drunk" she told him, making him look up in surprise. He saw her smiling and realised she was joking.

"That got yer thinking for a second, didn't it?" she smirked.

He shot her an angry look and reached for the door handle, prepared to shove her out of the way if necessary. Again she slammed it shut.

"Get yer ass outta my way" he demanded, putting his hand on her shoulder to push her to the side. She knocked his hand away and grabbed the front of his shirt with both hands, twisting him round and shoving his back against the wall, leaning close as she snapped at him.

"Why'd do yer think I wanna bring other men back when the one I want is already here" she reached up and kissed him. He flinched at the unexpected contact and pulled back, not returning it. Tasha let him go and stepped back, turning away as she ran her fingers through her hair. He heard her curse under her breath. She reached for her pack and started aimlessly rummaging in it. He could see her hands were shaking as she pulled out her hair brush and dragged it violently through her hair.

He cursed himself as he stood there staring at her back. That was the last thing he had expected her to do. What the hell was wrong with him? A beautiful, spirited woman had just kissed him and he'd stood there like a pussy, not knowing what to do. He could almost hear Merle's mocking voice in his head, telling him he was a useless waste of space and that it was about time he worked out what his balls were for. He watched as she tied her hair back with a stretchy tie and then made a decision.

Dropping his back pack to the ground he closed the space between them in a few wide strides and caught hold of her arm. Pulling her round to face him he dragged her closer. His hand clasped the back of her neck and he lowered his head, kissing her awkwardly. Her arms reached around his neck and she returned the kiss. After a few seconds they parted, neither meeting the others eye.

"Where'd we go from here?" she asked, finally looking up at him. He shrugged,

"Dunno, never been in a situation like this before" he admitted.

"Situation like what?" she asked, confused, surely he'd been with a woman before.

He looked at her sheepishly "Only times I been with a woman, one or other of us has been shitfaced and we've ended up in my truck or her car. Aint ever been sober and alone with anyone in a bedroom before, not like this" He looked at her horrified "Not that I'm saying this is gonna end up in bed or any….."

Tasha put her hand over his mouth, "Best you keep quiet now" she laughed as he struggled to explain himself. He nodded; relieved she had shut him up.

Tasha glanced coyly up at him, a small smile playing on her lips.

"So you get jealous or somethin' when I was talking to them new guys?" she asked.

"No" he lied "Just didn't like the way they was lookin' at you"

"And how was that?" she pushed.

"Like they wanted to jump yer bones first chance they got" he told her bluntly.

She laughed out loud, "You got a charming way with words" she teased.

He glared at her "Shut the hell up and come here" he pulled her towards him again. Her arms snaked around his neck and she pulled his face to hers. This time the kiss was hard and passionate. With one hand he pulled her hair free from the braid she had tied it in, tangling his fingers in it, keeping her close. His other arm went around her waist, holding her against him. One of her hands was on the back of his neck and her other rested on the small of his back. When they separated they were both out of breath.

Tasha grinned up at him.

"Why the hell didn't we do that a long time ago?"

He didn't reply, just pulled her closer for another kiss. He nudged her gently, causing her to take a few steps backwards towards the bed. When she didn't protest he carried on, feeling her smile into the kiss they were still sharing. Suddenly her feet tangled in his discarded pack and she fell backwards, pulling him with her. They landed in a tangled heap.

"Shit" he muttered as he tried to untangle himself from her and get to his feet "You okay?"

"This is going real well" she giggled as she lay on the floor. As he reached for her to help her up she pulled him down and rolled over, lying on top of him. Her hands rested on his chest and she leant down, her mouth almost touching his.

"This is where you went to sleep the other night" she informed him.

"Aint got any intention of dozing off this time" he reassured her.

She pushed herself up so she was sitting across his legs, a knee other side of his hips. Her hands reached for the bottom of his shirt and she started to undo the buttons. Instantly he caught her wrists, stopping her.

"Aint a pretty sight" he told her self-consciously, thinking about the scars on his back and stomach.

"You mean the scars?" she said softly "I saw the ones on yer stomach the other day, when I was patching up yer wound. How'd yer get them?"

"My Daddy was a mean, drunken bastard" he told her simply, waiting for the usual look of pity. She pulled her hands free from his grip and returned to the buttons. This time he allowed her to continue. There were several scars on his chest, many just small round pale marks and a couple of long deep slashes.

His breath caught as she touched the smaller ones "Cigarette burns?" She guessed, frowning as he nodded. Her fingertips brushed against the worst scar, it was long and raised and looked like whatever caused it hadn't been treated properly, causing it to heal badly.

"What about this one?" she asked as her fingers traced the length of it.

He swallowed hard; suddenly breathing was becoming very difficult.

"Threw me through a window when I was about 10 years old cos I knocked his can o' beer over. Ass was too tight to take me to the docs so Merle sewed it up. Took a while to heal up" he told her quietly.

"You were right" she said, meeting his eyes "Yer daddy was a bastard" She lowered her head and kissed him again, this time softly. She moved her mouth to his jawline and neck, then down to his shoulder before continuing down his chest. He couldn't help the gasp as her mouth followed where her fingertips had been and she kissed the long scar. Quickly he sat up pulling her face to his and capturing her mouth again. She pushed his shirt from his shoulders and her hands explored his back, gently touching all the scars she found there.

"So many" she muttered sadly

"Said it weren't pretty" he told her.

"You aint the only one" she said as she leant back and pulled her tee shirt over her head. His eyes travelled down her body, eyes widening when he caught sight of her flat stomach. There were several long thin marks criss-crossing her belly.

"How?" he asked as, without thinking, he reached out to touch them.

"Got captured by some rebel tribesmen when on patrol in Afghanistan" she told him "They tortured me to find out where the rest of my patrol was, used a knife. I didn't tell them that I was wearing a tracker and my unit caught up with them pretty quick." She flashed him a proud look "hurt like a bitch but was worth it. These bastards were setting roadside bombs and killing a lot of our troops, once we took them out the bombs pretty much stopped."

He shook his head, studying her face.

You let 'em take you, didn't you? So your men could find their hide out. Merle was right, women in the army are crazy bitches" he told her as he pulled her close and they stopped talking.

It was Carol that first noticed they hadn't appeared for the evening meal and before long Rick was asking her if she'd seen them. When she said she hadn't he flashed her a worried look.

"I'd best go see if I can find them" He told her, turning to leave. She caught his arm,

"I wouldn't" she told him with a small smile "Might be awkward"

He pulled away from her "Last time we didn't check up on them, they were taken, they almost died before we even realised they were missing. Not gonna let that happen again" He hurried from the room, Carol following him.

"What you all thought was happening before, probably is this time" she grinned as Rick stopped and turned to face her.

"How can you be sure?" He tried not to smile back at her.

"You just have to trust me on this one" Carol realised they were outside their room. Rick raised a hand to knock, suddenly his hand dropped and he span away, catching hold of Carol's arm and pulling her with him.

An embarrassed grin spread across his face "Think I'm gonna trust you on this. Best leave them alone."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N Trouble ahead. Enjoy**

**xxx**

Chapter 10

When Daryl arrived for breakfast the next morning he greeted Carol with a tired expression.

"Looks like someone didn't get much sleep last night" she innocently commented, ignoring the colour that rushed to his face. Tasha slipped into the room a few moments later, yawning as she took her bowl of oatmeal from Carol. She decided to ignore the raised eyebrow and knowing smirk on the older woman's face.

They sat at different tables and were so obvious at ignoring each other that everybody noticed.

"You two had another fight?" Maggie pulled out a chair and sat next to Tasha, Glenn took the seat opposite.

"What was it about this time?" he queried.

"We aint had a fight, don't know what yer talkin' about" Tasha shifted uncomfortably in her chair, not meeting their eyes.

"You're clearly avoiding each other this morning, just assumed you weren't talking" Maggie looked between the two of them, knowing something was going on.

Daryl sat at a table with Rick and Carl. He saw Rick staring at him with a small grin on his face.

"Missed you at dinner last night" Rick commented casually.

"Wasn't hungry" Daryl grunted in reply

"Guess Tasha wasn't hungry too" Rick didn't look at his friend, just carried on eating his breakfast.

He saw the spoon hesitate halfway to Daryl's mouth, before the hunter replied

"Guess she wasn't"

"Went to your room, just to check you was okay, you know after last time?" Abruptly Daryl looked up, seeing Rick grinning broadly. "Didn't need to knock 'cos I'm guessing it was all going pretty good"

Daryl dropped his spoon into his bowl and, without saying a word stormed from the room.

"What's up with him now?" Glenn commented as they saw him stride through the door. Tasha looked over her shoulder and saw Rick smiling at her. When she caught his eye his smile grew and he winked at her knowingly. This didn't go unnoticed by Maggie.

"Oh my God" she laughed "Now I know why you both missed dinner last night and why you're pretending not to see each other. You two finally got together"

Tasha shoved her bowl across the table and stood up.

"Hell, aint you people got anything better to do than interfere in other folks business?" With that she also stormed from the room.

"How they ever managed to stop being angry long enough to get together is gonna be one of life's mysteries" Glenn muttered as he tucked into Tasha discarded breakfast.

Tasha strode down the corridor and headed up the stairs to the roof. She liked it up there, it was quiet and somewhere she could think. She wasn't embarrassed about spending the night with Daryl, she just didn't think it was anyone's concern but theirs. She shoved the door open and walked outside. It was going to be another hot day and she appreciated the slight breeze she could feel on her face. She walked to the edge of the building and stared out over the forest.

"They piss you off too?" Daryl was leaning on the wall, near the doorway, smoking a cigarette.

She nodded and went over to him. She took the cigarette and took a long pull on it before handing it back.

"Didn't know yer smoked" he took a drag himself and held it back out to her. She shook her head.

"Gave it up a few years back, just needed a pull to calm down" she told him.

"Should've guessed can't keep secrets in this place. Don't know how Rick guessed so quick" Tasha was pacing the roof top.

"Came by our room last night to check we was okay when we didn't turn up for dinner" Daryl looked sheepish "Guess we should've been bit more discreet"

Tasha flashed him a grin.

"Yeah I guess we did get a bit enthusiastic at times"

They exchanged glances as they thought back to the previous night. Both seemed to have the same idea at the same time and they closed the distance between them, Daryl dropping the cigarette as he caught her face in his hands. Their lips crashed together in a hard, passionate kiss, arms wrapping around each other as they tried to get as close as possible. They were breathing heavily when they parted.

"Gonna have to find a place no one knows about" she told him "somewhere we don't have to worry 'bout being discreet"

He grinned at her "Why, what yer got planned?"

She gave him a suggestive look "You find us a place and I'll show yer exactly what I got planned"

He feigned indifference "You gonna give me an idea so I know it's worth my time finding somewhere"

Even though there was no one around to hear she still leant forwards and whispered into his ear, smiling as his eyes widened slightly and a smile crossed his face. When she stepped away he turned and headed for the door.

"Gonna start looking" He reached for the door handle.

As she turned back to the forest Tasha caught sight of a flash of movement, close to the edge of the trees.

"Did you see that?" She called softly. He was back by her side in a second, keen eyes searching the forest .

"Movement, just on the tree line behind the storage shed" she told him as they both looked into the forest. There was a glint of sunlight on metal and they both swore as they saw two large military trucks on the road in the distance. They appeared to be stationary and wouldn't be visible from anyone looking on the ground.

"Need to go tell Rick and the others" Daryl stepped back and headed for the door, Tasha following. He yanked the door open, stopping when he heard a cry from behind him. Tasha was stumbling towards him, an arrow embedded in her leg, just above her knee. He started towards her and an arrow whistled past his ear, just missing him. Both dropped to the ground.

"Go" she hissed at him "Warn the others. I'll be alright here, if I stay low the bastard can't get me again" she saw the indecision on his face.

"Go" she snapped "You gotta tell the others. This looks like big trouble"

He knew she was right and with a final look he slipped through the doorway. She gave him a few minutes to get down the stairs then dragged herself towards the door. It had swung shut after he had passed through and she had to reach up for the handle. As her fingers reached it she felt a sharp pain and saw another arrow protruding from the back of her hand, pinning it to the door. She swore loudly and tried to pull it free but it was firmly embedded in the wooden door. As she slumped back down she heard the sound of gunfire coming from both inside and outside the compound, then the sound of heavy vehicles followed by crashing and the screeching of metal. She realised that whoever was attacking them had used the heavy trucks to tear down the fences. Terminus was now well and truly breached.

Desperately she reached up with her good hand and pulled hard on the arrow, it came away from the door and out of her hand and she dropped down again. Her leg was bleeding and the arrow had passed right through, the tip slicking out the back of her leg. She ripped the sleeve from her shirt and tied it around her thigh, just above the arrow. She took a deep breath and gritted her teeth as she gripped the shaft and pulled it from her leg. She gave a muffled cry as the tip pulled free. She used the other shirt sleeve as a make shift bandage over the wound, then tore a strip off the bottom of her shirt and bandaged her hand, pulling the fabric tight to stem the bleeding. Cautiously she lifted her head, peering towards the trees. She caught a glimpse of a man with a bow, leaving the forest and heading for the broken down fence. She guessed he was part of an advance guard, sent ahead to scout. He'd obviously seen her and Daryl and tried to take them out to stop them warning the others. He reached the fence and scrambled over the twisted metal, heading for the building she was on. She swore again, angry with herself for being stupid enough to leave her weapons in her room. She hadn't thought she would need them to eat breakfast. She forced herself to stand and limped over to the door, still clutching the arrow she'd pulled from her leg, she would wait for the man to come out then jump him from behind, she might be able to disarm him. As she waited she could still hear gun fire, mixed with shouts and screams. The longer she waited the angrier she got, she couldn't wait to kick some ass.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N Guest reviewer - Have to reply here as can't send PM. Sorry you didn't like the last chapter and I appreciate the criticism. I wrote it as I felt that the world they live in needed some lighter moments. I admit I did get a bit carried away and it went on longer than planned :) No more romance now, just threats and trouble. Hope you enjoy. Thanks for reviewing. xxx**

**Let me know what you think, I love hearing from you - good or bad (good is best though!)**

**Thanks for reading**

**xxx**

Chapter 11

Finally the door opened and the man that had shot her cautiously peered through, holding his bow in front of him, an arrow in place, ready to fire. He stepped out onto the roof and she leaped forward, trying to drive the arrow into the back of his neck. He must have sensed her at the last minute as he twisted sideways and the arrow only glanced his shoulder, barely making a scratch.

He yelled and let go of his bow, dropping it to free his hands. Quickly he lashed out, catching her cheek with his fist. Her injured leg gave way and she fell. Before she could regain her feet he had grabbed her and pinned her arms behind her back.

"You aint going nowhere" he snarled at her. The door opened and another man came out, armed with a rifle. He grinned when he saw the two of them, struggling on the rooftop.

"Good find" he told his colleague as he looked Tasha up and down "Looks like a real wildcat, I love it when they got a bit of spiit" Between the two of them they forced Tasha down the stairs and outside. She was half dragged, half pushed along until they reached the yard. To her horror she saw most of her friends already there. They were on their knees, with their hands on their heads being held at gunpoint by several armed men, most wearing military uniform, all heavily armed.

She saw a bleeding Rick staring helplessly at Judith as she lay screaming on the ground, Carol nearby but unable to hold her as she knelt, her hands on her head. Tasha scanned the people quickly, trying to see who was missing. As well as Rick and Carol she saw Tara. Maggie and Glenn were also there, looking hopelessly at each other. Tyreese was there, close to Sasha and Bob was on her other side. She saw a couple of the hunters she had told the dirty joke to but several where missing. There was no sign of Daryl or Michonne. Abraham had a look of fury on his face as he was struggled against two men. It was only when one of them held a gun to Rosita's temple that he gave in and reluctantly knelt. Another man came into the yard and shoved Carl to the floor, the boy's lip bleeding where he had been struck. Rick started to rise to get to his son but a blow from a gun knocked him down again.

"Move again and you die" One of the men stepped towards Rick and stared into his face aggressively. The man straightened and turned towards Tasha.

He nodded to the two men that had bought her in. "Put her with the others" As the men shoved her forward she swung round and tried to attack one of then, desperately trying to get hold of his gun. ignoring the pin from her injured hand. A blow from the second man soon stopped that. He raised his fist again, ready to strike but the man that had threatened Rick stopped him. He was clearly the one in charge as the big man instantly lowered his fist

"Wait" he demanded, stepping over to where Tasha lay on the ground. She knocked his hand away as he reached for her.

"Easy, soldier" he laughed as he reached down again. She still wore her dog tags, even though she no longer wore her uniform. During the struggle with the big man they had slipped out from under her shirt and the leader grabbed hold of them, pulling them from her neck.

" Natasha Jackson" he read, staring at her with narrowed eyes. "What regiment and rank?" he demanded.

"The hell's it got to do with you?" she snapped as she staggered to her feet, favouring her injured leg. He laughed at her.

"Cos if you're one of us your life will get a whole lot easier" he informed her.

She looked at her friends, held captive and decided to play along for now.

"Captain, Third Infantry" she informed him.

"Impressive, young for a Captain. Where have you served?"

"Iraq and Afghanistan" She stood up straighter, trying to look tougher than she felt at that moment.

He studied her for a while then handed her tags back,

"It's alright boys" he declared "She's one of us" The two men that had captured her stepped back, nodding with approval.

"What's going on here. Why did you attack us?" she questioned the leader.

"First let me introduce myself" he spoke smoothly, used to being in command. "Major Jonathan Williams, US air force. This isn't an attack, it's more of a takeover. We find a group of survivors then take them to our base, along with anything they have that's useful." He made it sound like a friendly, helpful thing not a violent, guns blazing invasion.

"What if they don't want to go?" Tasha asked him, hoping she could persuade them to leave.

His next words dashed that hope.

"They don't get any say in it" He informed her with a tight smile. "We decided it was for the best, all survivors in one place, under military protection"

"What happens to them at your base" Tasha was pushing it, trying to find out.

"The men work the fields and fortify the base during the day. The women do the cooking, cleaning and all the other shit women do. At night they do the other things women do best" There were some laughs from of his men.

"Got a couple of real good lookers here, Major" one of them called out as he fingered Maggie's hair. She flinched away and Glenn lunged forward.

"Get your hands off her" he shouted as he charged the soldier. The men laughed again as he was struck with the butt of a gun. The soldier kicked him hard in the ribs as he lay on the ground. One of them grabbed Maggie as she tried to go to him.

"You won't need him soon sweetheart" he told her "You'll have some real men to keep you company in the night" Maggie struggled to get free, which only caused the man to hold her tighter.

"Enough!" Major Williams shouted. "Let her go, there'll be plenty of time for that later. We need to pack up and head back to base. Let's get loaded. Usual drill, men in one truck women in the other"

"What about the brat, Sir?" one of the men indicated the still crying Judith as she lay unattended on the floor.

"Don't see any use for a brat" The Major stated coldly "Get rid of it"

Rick cried out and lurched forward as Tasha yelled out.

"You don't touch that baby"

It went quiet as the Major faced her.

"Give me one reason not to" he stared at her.

She looked him straight in the eye.

"'Cos she's mine" she lied

The Major studied her "I see. Perhaps you should go and see to her. Make her shut up." He stated.

Tasha picked her way through the kneeling people until she reached Judith. She had barely held the child and didn't have a clue what to do. Trying to look full of confidence she scooped the baby up and held her close to her chest, murmuring rubbish at the crying child. Fortunately just being held seemed to be enough and Judith instantly stopped sobbing, snuggling close to Tasha. She walked back to the Major.

"I guess that's the Daddy" he pointed at Rick, who was being held by two of the armed men, fighting to get free.

Tasha nodded and the Major told his men to release him.

"He goes with you then" he told her. She handed Judith to Rick as soon as he reached her side and walked over to Carl.

"He's mine as well" she told him, resting her hands on the boy's shoulders.

"You're telling me he's your son" The Major didn't believe her.

"He's not mine by blood, but that's his Daddy as well. That makes him mine." The Major thought for a second, then nodded.

"He goes with you as well then. Any other relatives here, a few cousins perhaps?" He made it clear he wasn't going to take much more.

"No" she told him "But Bob there is an army medic and Sasha's his and Abraham over there is a US Ranger and Rosita belongs to him" she tried to remember if anyone else had military history. She had no idea if Bob and Sasha were a couple but she was trying to keep as many safe as she could.

The Major separated all those she had named and ordered the rest to be loaded in the trucks. Maggie and Glenn fought to be together but were eventually forcibly separated and Tasha had to turn away from the anguished look on Glenn's face as Maggie was bundled into the truck with the other women. The trucks pulled away and started the trip back to the base. Smaller trucks pulled in and the remaining men began to strip Terminus of anything worth taking.

Tasha and the others were told to get into one of the smaller trucks . They were told they would be taken to the base and would remain free but they wouldn't be allowed weapons until they had proved they were loyal to the soldiers and not their old group.

They piled reluctantly into the back of the vehicle and it was driven away. Tasha still had no idea what had happened to Daryl or Michonne and couldn't ask the others as she didn't want the driver or guard to know about them. They sat in silence for a while then Rick leant over, covering her hand with his.

"Thank you" he told her simply as he looked down at Judith, now sleeping in his arms. She just nodded in return.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

After driving for a couple of hours they arrived at the base. It was an old farm house with a few outbuildings around it. There were also several tents set up around the yard. The whole farm was surrounded by high wire fences and they were being reinforced with metal plates. There were a lot of thin, tired looking men working on the fences, which stretched as far as she could see. There were fields of crops and large vegetable gardens also being tended too by weak men and women. Several women were in the yard, doing laundry or preparing food. They all had lost, frightened expressions on their faces and some of them cringed and looked away as the trucks swept into the yard.

The men were unloaded first and taken at gunpoint to work on the fences. Those that refused were beaten and hit with guns until they gave in. The hunter that Tasha had spoken to a few days before was shot when he tried to take the gun from one of the soldiers. He wasn't killed and the soldiers grabbed him and dragged him to the gates. They opened them and he was taken outside and thrown to the ground, bleeding from a wound to the stomach. The soldiers returned and locked the gates. It wasn't long before the walkers that were milling around found him and they could hear his screams for several minutes as he was torn apart.

Tasha, Rick, Judith and Carl were taken to one of the smaller tents on the edge of the yard.

"This will be yours" They were told, then they were left alone to settle in. Abraham, Bob and the two women were taken to their own quarters in tents nearby.

Tasha sank down onto one of the cots in the tent, her head in her hands.

"How we gonna get out of this one?" she asked Rick helplessly. He handed Judith to Carl and sat next to her.

"Don't know yet, but we'll come up with a plan. You managed to keep some of us from being locked up and as far as I know Daryl and Michonne are still out there. They won't let us down." He gave her a reassuring hug "If I know Daryl he won't rest 'till he's got us out of here"

She gave him a small smile "I know, but that's what worries me"

They managed to get some sleep, Rick and Tasha awkwardly sharing the bed to keep up the appearance they were a couple, ignoring the small snigger from Carl in the other bed as they kept as far apart as possible. They spent the next day wandering round the base, trying to search out weak spots, looking for anything that could help them escape. They discovered one of the outbuildings was the armoury but it was guarded by at least two armed men at all times. There were at least two dozen soldiers in the base at any time, plus almost as many again out on runs or rounding up survivors and they all carried weapons at all times. The workers were all too weak and too scared to do anything other than what they were told so there was no help to be found there.

They could see Glenn and Tyreese as well as other men from Terminus being forced to work in the blazing sun, with barely enough food and water to keep them alive. Tasha had been caught taking water to them and had been dragged up in front of the Major. He had carefully explained that he understood these people had used to be her friends but they were now just workers and they didn't need to waste resources on them. They could always find more workers if they needed them.

The women were made to cook huge amounts of food every day for the soldiers and one day a woman was caught eating some left overs. She was dragged into the yard and beaten in front of everybody as an example of what happened to those who stole. Tasha could hardly look at Maggie, Carol and the other Terminus women when she saw how tired they already looked. Maggie had shadows under her eyes and a bruise on her cheek. She looked broken, and that broke Tasha's heart.

No matter how hard they tried they couldn't find a way out.

On the evening of their first full day there they were summoned to the yard. They had seen the large caged area but hadn't seen it used. It gave them all a bad feeling.

The Major was sitting in a chair, at one side of the cage and most of the other soldiers were gathered around it, expectant looks on their faces. They were told to go and stand by the Major. As they approached him a pretty young blonde girl walked over and handed him a bottle of beer. He grabbed the girl by the hair and pulled her face down, kissing her aggressively. She turned away from him, her eyes filled with tears and Tasha felt rather than saw the reactions of those around her.

"Beth" Rick whispered, grabbing hold of Carl as he tried to run to the girl. The girl glanced at them and her eyes widened in shock, then she quickly looked at the ground with a subtle shake of her head, telling them not to acknowledge her. Tasha had never met Beth but she knew all about her. She knew how she had fled the prison with Daryl and they had survived alone for several weeks before she had been taken from him in an ambush at the house they were sheltering in. She knew Daryl still felt guilt over that and felt he had let her down by not protecting her. She knew he still felt that Maggie blamed him for not looking after her sister better, despite Maggie's reassurances that she knew he would have down his best for her.

Major Williams must have noticed them staring after the girl as she walked away.

"A blonde like that's a real rarity nowadays, that's why I kept her for myself. She was such a pure little innocent when she arrived, I couldn't believe my luck" he laughed as Tasha gripped Ricks arm hard to stop him lunging forward.

She heard Abrahams voice in the distance.

"A good looking girl, you're a lucky man Major" She knew he would be fuming as well, but he did a good job of satisfying the Majors ego.

"You're in for a treat tonight" they were told as they stood near the edge of the cage. Several soldier's came in pulling two men between them. They opened the cage door and shoved the men inside.

"Fight to the death, winner goes free" the Major told the men as they stood bewildered in the cage.

"No rules apply, just beat the crap out of each other"

The men stared at each other, then one spoke up.

"What if we refuse?" he asked

"Then you both get fed to the biters outside and we find someone more willing to entertain us. You fight at least one of you lives." The Major casually explained the rules. The men stared at each other again, then one jumped towards the other. It was a brief violent fight and the winner was left bleeding and battered. Once his victory was complete he was led out of the cage.

"You're free to go now" the Major told him. His face fell as he realised he was being led to the gates.

"Wait, I'll never make it outside on my own, not at night, not without weapons, please!" he begged. The gates were opened and he was shoved outside. He tried to run off in the darkness but it wasn't long before his screams were heard. There were two more fights that night and the winner of each was cast outside. Finally it was over and they were free to return to their quarters.

"These people are sick, we've got to get out of here" Rosita cried, barely holding herself together.

They were woken in the middle of the night by a commotion in the yard. Tasha and Rick slipped from their tent leaving Judith with Carl and headed towards the circle of soldiers. They were surrounding someone on the ground, jeering and insulting as they took turns in either kicking or hitting the kneeling figure. The Major strode towards the group, demanding to know what was going on.

"Caught this dumb asshole trying to break in over the fence, Sir" One of the soldiers explained. The Major smiled

"Let's see what he thought it was worth coming in here for then" As the soldiers parted to let the Major through Rick and Tasha got a clear view of the prisoner.

It was Daryl.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N This chapter contains a small amount of threat against a baby. It's not really graphic but just thought I'd better mention it.**

Chapter 13

Tasha felt Rick's hand grip her arm, preventing her from moving towards Daryl. He shook his head slightly, telling her to stop, that she wouldn't be able to do anything at this time. Helplessly she watched as Daryl was pulled to his feet and held in front of the Major.

"Why are you here? What did you possibly think you could get away with, breaking into a military base?" he demanded.

Daryl stared at him defiantly

"Jus' wanted a few supplies, food's getting low out there. Been watching you a few days, you all look pretty well fed, figured you could spare a little something" He stared at the Major challenging him.

"Did it not occur to you to just come to the gate, that we may have let you in and given you what you needed?" The Major asked, his friendly tone misleading.

Daryl looked across to the caged area and then at the fences.

"Kinda thought you weren't too friendly. Saw the workers at the fence and the fights earlier. Saw what you did to the winners. Didn't think you looked like the types to share"

The Major laughed.

"You would have been right" He glanced around at the grinning soldiers.

"What do you think boys?" he asked them "What shall we do with this thieving piece of crap?"

"How 'bout I say I'm sorry, you tell me not to do it again and then send me on my way" Daryl asked hopefully, causing the Major to laugh.

"I like you, you've got balls, but there is no way I am going to let you just walk out that gate. You tried to steal from us and that is unacceptable." The Major looked around at his men. His eyes fell on Rick and Tasha.

"Let's ask our newest member what she would suggest" he beckoned Tasha closer to him. "Well Captain, what do you think" Tasha stood next to the Major, studying the prisoner.

"You gonna let a bitch tell you what to do?" Daryl sneered "thought you was the big man in charge" Tasha stepped forward and to the amusement of all watching, punched him hard in the gut. As he bent over wheezing for breath she leant forward, getting into his face.

"Show some respect, your life might depend on what I decide" she hissed at him. From the corner of her eye she saw the Major smile in approval.

"I wouldn't put him to work on the fence or in the fields, I think he's too much of a trouble maker. I'd lock him up somewhere and put him in the cage tomorrow, maybe with a walker or two. Looks like he'd put on a good show." Several of the soldiers nodded in agreement.

"That's settled then. Put him in the barn and make sure he can't get free. Looks like we're getting a good night's entertainment tomorrow." The Major took Tasha's arm and led her away.

"I think you'll settle in here just fine" He told her as he escorted her back to Rick. "You're a lucky man to have found yourself a woman like this" he told him as he strode back towards the farmhouse.

They watched as Daryl was dragged off towards one of the outbuildings. He struggled and put up a fight but they managed to get him inside. A few minutes later the soldiers left the barn, chaining the door closed behind them. One remained behind to guard the door.

Rick and Tasha returned to their tent, arm in arm, looking like a loving couple. As soon as the tent flap was closed behind them they pulled apart and Tasha started pacing the small space. Carl sat up, holding Judith.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Daryl just got captured, Tasha managed to buy us some time but we need a plan. We've all got to get out of here before tonight" Rick explained to his son. Tasha headed to the door.

"I'm gonna go see him, see if he has a plan of his own. Maybe he got caught on purpose" she pulled open the flap.

"Be careful, don't let them see you" Rick cautioned. He knew it was pointless to try and stop her. Tasha just nodded as she slipped out into the darkness.

She kept to the shadows as she made her way stealthily to the barn. She slipped around the back, away from the door and the armed guard. The barn was old and there were several lose planks and it didn't take long to loosen enough of them to make a gap big enough for her slight form to slip through. Her eyes adjusted to the dark and she could see Daryl sitting against a wall, his hands were cuffed behind him, the cuffs attached to a metal ring set in the ground.

He flashed her a grin when he saw her approaching.

"Didn't think you take too long to find a way in" he told her. "You really need to hit me so damn hard?" he complained as she knelt next to him.

"I held back, could have been a whole lot harder" she touched a cut on his cheek "You okay?"

"Bin a lot worse before" he told her. "You got a plan to get us out of here?"

"I kinda hoped you did" she frowned "You mean you didn't get caught on purpose?"

He shrugged and gave her a half smile,

"Thought I'd get in here and just wing it, see what happened"

She shook her head.

"You're no help at all" she told him as she rose to her feet.

"I gotta go, can't risk getting caught in here. Sit tight, me and Rick are working on it"

"You and Rick?" he muttered as she headed back to the gap in the boards "I feel safer already"

She gave him a final glare and slipped outside, making sure to replace the boards. She crept to the edge of the barn and stepped round finding herself looking at the barrel of a gun. The Major was there, a look of disappointment on his face as he stared at her. Four soldiers flanked him, two pointing guns at her. The other two grabbed her, forcing her arms behind her and cuffing her wrists. She was pushed towards the Major.

"You think I didn't know he was part of your old group?" He snarled at her "Chambers here recongnised him from the rooftop." The man who had shot her with the bow and arrow stepped forward, a cold smile on his face.

"I gave you a chance to prove your loyalty and you failed" The Major gripped her arm and pulled her towards the yard. As they approached she could see Rick and Carl, the boy holding Judith. Bob and Sasha were standing to one side. As she was pushed forwards Abraham and Rosita were led over to the others.

"What the hell's going on?" Abraham stepped in front of Rosita as one of the soldiers made a grab for the pretty woman.

"I feel I can no longer trust any of you" The Major indicated Tasha. "She has proved you have no loyalty to me and this base, therefore the men and boy will be put to work, the women will be put with the others. As for the brat…."

Two soldiers grabbed Rick and a third pulled Judith from Carl's arms. Abraham and Bob tried to get to her but were forced back at gunpoint. She was bought over to the Major and he took hold of her, supporting her with one arm as he pulled his knife from its sheath. Rick and the others fought desperately as the man held the knife to the baby' s tiny throat.

"Please!" Rick cried in a choked voice "Don't hurt her, I'll do anything, just don't hurt her"

The Major turned to Tasha "He will do anything for his child, what about you? Are you even the kid's mother?" The look on her face told him what he wanted to know.

"Another lie" He stared at her "There is one way you can save this child" he told her. "You will fight in the cage and she will live as long as you win. You lose a fight and she will die." Tasha saw Rick's desperate face and nodded in agreement.

The Major pushed the baby at one of his men, "Take her to the women's quarters, along with those two" he pointed at Sasha and Rosita " They will be available from tonight. As for them" he indicated the struggling men. "Put them to work on the boundary, we could do with some strong bodies up there" He ordered Tasha to be taken to the house and locked in one of the unused rooms and kept under guard at all times.

Tasha was left alone all day with no food or water. They left her hands cuffed behind her and she spent the time resting and preparing herself mentally for what was to come.

At nightfall they came for her and took her to the cage. A skinny man was already cowering inside, scared and confused. None of the workers knew what went on in the cage, they just knew that no one came back if they were taken.

The cuffs were removed and she was shoved through the door.

"You will fight to the death" The Major told them "If you win you go free" he told the man, before facing Tasha "and if you win, you will be back to fight again and the baby will live another day"

The man faced her "You have a baby?" he asked her with wide eyes. She managed a nod as she circled the man. He straightened his back and faced her.

"Can you make it quick?" he asked her. Tasha met his eyes and gave a brief nod.

The man lunged at her, aiming a punch that fell short and he fell into her.

"I've nothing left to live for, kill me and save your child" he whispered as he tried to grab her. She pushed him away and knocked him to the ground, straddling his back and forcing his head back. She leaned closer to his ear.

"Thank you" she breathed as she twisted "I'm sorry" she closed her eyes and pulled back. The man's neck snapped and his body slumped to the ground. Tasha fell back and crawled away, rubbing her hands against her jeans as she looked at the motionless body.

The Major stood and clapped his hands slowly.

"Efficient" he commented "Not the strongest opponent but still not bad." He ordered her taken back to the house "Tomorrow we will find you more of a challenge."

She was cuffed again, this time her hands in front of her, and locked in the same room. Sometime during the next day the door opened and Beth slipped into the room with a bottle of water and a limp sandwich. An armed man waited just outside the door.

"Thank you for trying to keep Judith safe" Beth whispered, her eyes dropping to the plate. "Take care in there tonight" the blonde woman backed out of the room and the door was locked behind her. Tasha peeled the top piece of bread away and found a small folding knife hidden underneath. Quickly she tucked it into her boot, appreciating the risk Beth had taken to arm her. She spent the next few hours resting and recalling all her military training in hand to hand combat.

She was ready when they came for her.


	14. Chapter 14

**Enjoy, please let me know what you think. Thanks.**

**xxxxx**

Chapter 14

She wasn't ready to see Rick and the others from Terminus sitting on the ground alongside the cage. They were being held at gunpoint and watched her with anxious eyes. She saw Glenn looking helplessly at Maggie, his face cut and bruised. Carol was looking at her, eyes shining with unshed tears as the cuffs were removed and she was pushed into the cage. The man waiting for her was a lot bigger than the one from the night before. He was stronger and wanted to live. It was a hard, brutal fight and Tasha took several savage blows before she managed to pin the man and choke him. She didn't want to use the knife unless she had no choice. She knew they would work out where she had got it from.

Once the big man was down she faced the Major, breathing hard, clutching her ribs. The man had managed to get a few kicks in and he hadn't held back.

"That was much more entertaining" the Major stood, raising his hands to quieten his men, who had been cheering in appreciation of the fight.

"Now we move to the main event" He smiled coldly at Tasha. "I've been looking forward to this" he told her as two of his men came forward, bringing a struggling, cursing figure with them. Tasha had been expecting this so she wasn't surprised when Daryl was shoved into the cage with her. She knew by the gasps and sobs behind her that the others hadn't been prepared. They freed Daryl's hands and the two of them stared at each other.

The Major nodded to another man and a slight blonde figure was pushed forward. Daryl stared in shock at Beth. It was the first time he had seen her since the funeral home. He took in her haggard features and her now dull blue eyes. She had shadows under her eyes and looked like she had lost all hope. He rushed to the bars and she met him on the other side, her fingers brushing his.

"I looked for you" he told her "chased the car all night, couldn't track it at the crossroads . I'm sorry" His voice was quiet "I'm sorry I let you down"

Beth shook her head "You didn't let me down. The whole house thing was a set up, it was a trap. As soon as I stepped outside they grabbed me and forced me into the car. They said they'd been watching the place, just wanted me and they didn't need you. They said they had sent in enough walkers you'd never survive."

"However touching this reunion is it's time to get on" the Major interrupted, pulling Beth away. She tore her eyes from Daryl and found Maggie's tearstained face in the group of prisoners. She managed a sad smile at her sister before the Major pulled her down onto his lap.

"Must make sure you have the best seat in the house" he told her, dropping his hand to her thigh and stroking it absently.

He waved towards the cage "You know the rules now, he dies you and the brat live, you die so does the baby" Daryl faced her

"You fightin' for Judith as well as you?" She lowered her eyes and nodded

"Already killed two to keep her alive" she told him quietly. She looked up and met his eyes "Don't think I can do it again, not this time"

"You have to" he told her "You gotta keep her safe" She backed away from him

"I can't. Can't kill you"

"Enough talk, fight or all three of you will die" the Major was getting bored.

Daryl glared at Tasha.

"You don't wanna kill me 'cos of the other night?" he asked "You think it was somethin' special, that we're a couple now or some such crap" He saw a brief flash of anger cross her face. "Hell girl, you was available and up for it, weren't no big deal" she knew he was trying to make her angry enough to attack him, but she couldn't.

"It was okay when it lasted" he goaded "but didn't have to be you. Any other slut would have done me." She finally snapped, just like he knew she would, and lunged at him, landing a blow to his jaw. Going against every instinct in him not to hit a woman he swung back and caught her in the ribs. She knew he held the blow back but it still knocked her off her feet. She got a glimpse of Rick's anguished face as they fought, he knew his daughter's life depended on the death of one of his friends. As Daryl reached down to pull her up she hooked her leg behind his, sweeping his feet from under him. She rolled to her feet as he fell and planted a kick in his gut. They were trying not to hurt each other but knew it had to look good enough to convince the Major and his men. Daryl leapt up and grabbed her, pinning her to the bars, his arm across her throat, choking her. She tried to pull his arm away as she gasped for breath. The soldiers cheered her on, shouting at her to fight. In desperation she bought her knee up and Daryl folded in half with a grunt of pain. The soldiers groaned in sympathy. Tasha got behind him, locking her arm across his throat. She hesitated, knowing he was allowing her to keep hold of him.

"Do it" he hissed, leaning back toward her, making it even easier.

"I can't" she cried, sudden , unexpected tears coming to her eyes.

"You gotta to save Asskicker " he insisted. Blinded by tears, her body shaking with sobs she started to apply pressure. She felt him relax against her, offering no resistance.

Suddenly a huge explosion ripped through the night. A wave of hot air and debris flew over them, knocking several of the soldiers off their feet. Tasha let go of Daryl and stumbled backwards, ears ringing from the force of the blast. She saw him flash her a grin, not looking surprised.

The Major shoved Beth away from him and leapt to his feet.

"That was the armoury" he shouted. He indicated at two men "You two take the prisoners back to their quarters, the rest of you follow me" He headed toward the burning armoury, his men close behind.

"Sir, What about the two in the cage?" one of the men yelled. The Major stopped and looked back.

"Leave them, the one she killed will turn soon, let him finish them off" he ordered.

Daryl stared at Tasha, he could see the tear tracks on her face.

"Aint seen you cry before" he murmured.

"I'm not" she snapped "it's the heat and dust from the explosion" she turned away , flustered by him seeing what she considered a weakness.

"Did you know that was gonna happen?" she asked as she looked for a way out of the cage.

"Kinda hoped it was gonna happen in time" he told her. "Had to get caught to cause a distraction. Guessed I'd end up in the cage, didn't guess it would be against you though." He caught her arm and pulled her to face him.

"Didn't mean them things I said, just had to get you riled up enough to want to fight" he told her quietly.

"I know" she replied. A sudden noise made them both look round. The big man she had killed in her first fight was sitting up, his milky eyes seeking them out. She heard the two guards laugh, they had delayed taking the captives back to their quarters as they had wanted to watch what happened when the dead man reanimated. The man lurched to his feet and headed towards them, jaws snapping, arms outstretched. Daryl pushed her behind him and readied himself to protect her as best he could. Before he could do anything Tasha pushed him to one side and strode up to the fresh walker. She plunged a knife into its head and it fell to the ground. Daryl looked at her in disbelief.

"The hell you get that from?" he questioned, indicating the knife.

She gave him a smirk.

"Out my boot" she folded the blade up and tucked the weapon back. The two guards were furious at being cheated out of seeing the two of them torn apart and raised their weapons.

"Just kill him, let him come back and get the bitch" one of them suggested. The other shook his head.

"Can't, she's still got that knife she'll just kill him. We'll shoot them both then get this lot locked back up. Better see what's going on with the Major."

They raised their rifles, preparing to fire. Tasha saw Rick and Abraham exchange glances and knew they were planning to try and jump the guards. Before any of them could move both guards fell. One had a green and black bolt imbedded in the back of his skull and the other was missing his head completely.

Michonne strode forward, flicking the blood from her katana, behind her Daryl could see Beth. She was clutching his crossbow and he could see her shaking as she lowered it and let it drop to the ground. In seconds Maggie was at her side, wrapping her arms around her sister and holding her close.

"Thought we'd lost you." she sobbed as she stroked Beth's hair "Never thought I'd see you again" Slowly Beth returned the hug, her shoulders shaking as she began to cry. Carol went to them and embraced them both.

Rick was removing the weapons from the dead soldiers as Michonne approached the cage.

"Cut that a bit close didn't yer" Daryl quipped. "Thought you hadn't made it"

"You're still alive aren't you?" she replied as she turned away, smirking as he called for her to let them out. Rick told them to stand away from the door and shot the lock out. Once they were free they followed him back to the woman's quarters where he hoped to find Judith. The building was empty. In a rage he headed for the site of the explosion, determined to find the Major and find out where his daughter was. When they got to the burning outbuilding they found that Michonne hadn't just destroyed the armoury she had removed several of the weapons first and released the prisoners, handing out the guns. She had come over the fence the previous night, using the distraction of Daryl's capture. She had found a way into the armoury without being seen . The soldiers were outnumbered and those that had survived were now kneeling and being held at gunpoint. The Major was being kept to one side, two armed men watching over him.

As Rick stormed towards him, a young woman came forward. She was holding Judith and held her out to her relieved father.

"I kept her safe for you" she told him shyly, as he clutched the baby tightly.

"Thank you" he told her gratefully, as she smiled sweetly at him.

Daryl saw Beth, still holding tightly to Maggie's hand. She released it and approached him, holding out his crossbow.

"I remembered what you showed me" she told him softly as he took the weapon from her. He surprised everyone by pulling her into a hug.

"You did real good, saved us all" he told her "Knew you could do it" She rested her head on his shoulder and he could feel her trembling against him.

"I always knew you'd find me" she told him, her blue eyes tearful as she gazed at him. "It was what kept me going, the whole time I was here, every time I was with him." Her eyes found the Major and she flinched away from his arrogant stare.

"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it" He called "I know better"

At the look on her face Daryl pushed her away, shoving her back to Maggie. He span and advanced on the Major.

"She was such an innocent" the man taunted "I taught her everything she knows" He seemed proud of himself. Tasha saw Rick and Abraham move towards him, looks of disgust on their faces but Daryl got there first.

He pulled the Major to his feet and laid into him, pounding his fists into the man's face and body over and over until he was motionless on the ground, a bleeding and battered mess. Daryl stepped back, hands bleeding, panting for breath. He rounded on the kneeling soldiers.

"Any of you other bastards touch our women?" he snarled. Several of them flinched back. Daryl looked at his group, eyes searching for each woman.

"Carol, any of them hurt you? Sasha, Maggie, what about you?" he saw Tara cowering against Rosita, her eyes wide.

"Any of them touch you?" he asked gently. She nodded slightly and pointed to one of the men.

"Him" she said quietly. Rosita's arms tightened around her as Daryl pulled the now terrified man from the group of soldiers. Before he could raise a hand, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"I got this one" he turned to see Abraham, a cold, vicious look on his face. The big soldier had always had a soft spot for Tara, saw her as a daughter he would have been proud of. Daryl stepped back, allowing the bigger man access to the cowering soldier. It didn't take long for justice to be served.

It was decided that the remaining soldiers would be escorted out of the base. They would be left with no weapons or supplies and were told they would be shot if they showed their faces anywhere near the base. It wasn't long after the escort party returned that the first screams were heard.

No one felt any remorse.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Tasha found Daryl in the kitchen of the farmhouse. He was leaning over the sink, trying to clean his battered knuckles. She stepped forward and caught his hand, taking hold of the cloth he was using to wipe the dried blood off. Soaking it she carefully dabbed at the grazes.

"You okay?" she asked gently, knowing he was still beating himself up over Beth.

He shrugged, not looking at her. She dried his hand and started to wrap it with a bandage he'd found, before doing the same with his other hand. She leant against his side.

"Don't shut down on me" she told him "Talk to me"

He pulled his hands free and rounded on her.

"What'd you want me to talk 'bout?" he snarled "how 'bout I let that girl down and she's bin through hell at that bastards hands for the last few weeks, all 'cos I didn't take better care of her" He turned away from her "she needed me to look out for her and I screwed it up"

Tasha pulled him around to face her.

"I wasn't there but I know you would've done all you could to keep her safe. You got her outta the prison, she's still alive now. She's been through hell but she'll recover, she's got her sister now and the rest of you. She's a lot stronger than you all give her credit for. She slipped me that knife in a damn sandwich and she killed that guard with your crossbow. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but she'll get through it. Last thing she needs is you moping round feeling sorry for yourself."

She caught sight of movement over his shoulder and saw Beth standing in the doorway. The blonde girl met her eyes and gave a slight smile before coming into the room.

"There's running water upstairs if you want to wash up" she told Tasha "and there's a couple of comfy beds if you need to rest. I guess you hurt all over after being in the cage." She took Tasha's arm "let me show you"

Tasha let herself be guided upstairs and shown the bedroom, where there was a small bathroom attached. Beth opened a large closet.

"There may be some clothes that fit you as well" she said sweetly. Tasha nodded her thanks. Beth stared at her for a few seconds.

"I heard what you said about me being strong. Thank you, everyone else thinks I'm weak, just good enough to look after Judith. They don't think I can cope on my own. I've done what I had to just to survive for the last few weeks and you're right I will get over it." She reached out and hugged Tasha. The soldier hesitated for a second then returned the embrace. Beth stepped away.

"He blames himself for everything that happened at the prison, he thinks he should have been able to stop it. Now he blames himself for what happened to me. He still thinks he's worthless 'cos of the way he was bought up, it's what his daddy always told him. He needs someone to convince him he's a good man, as good as any other here, better than some." She smiled at Tasha again, giving her a meaningful look.

"I'll leave you to get cleaned up" the slight girl slipped from the room closing the door, leaving Tasha staring after her.

She stripped down to her underwear and using a wash cloth scrubbed herself. Even with cold water it felt good to be clean. She found a short sleeved man's shirt in the closet and pulled it on. Taking the damp cloth she sat on the bed and pulled the grubby bandage from the arrow wound on her leg. Bob had patched it up when they first arrived at the base but she hadn't had a chance to check it since. It seemed to be healing fine so she cleaned it up and left the bandage off. The wound on her hand was worse. She'd pulled the stitches that Bob had put in for her. She'd have to ask the medic to take a look at again. The bed was soft and comfortable so she decided to just rewrap it and catch him later. It wouldn't hurt to get a few minutes sleep. She was sitting cross legged and struggling to retie the bandage one handed when the door opened and Daryl came in.

"Beth said you wanted these" he told her, holding out a bottle of water and a couple of white tablets. She gave a small smile.

"I think Beth's playing cupid" she told him "I never asked for anything". He rolled his eyes and set the bottle and tablets down on a small bedside table.

"Damn women, always interfering" he muttered. He watched her fumbling with the bandage for a few seconds before sitting next to her and grabbing her hand.

"Making a right mess of that" he told her as he quickly strapped it back up. He pulled his hand away and went to stand but Tasha put her hand on his arm, pulling him down again. She leant against him.

"Stay for a while" she said softly "Get some rest" He realised how tired he was as he sank back onto the pillows. Tasha lay next to him and they drifted off to sleep.

It was still dark when he woke alone in the bed. He stayed where he was for a while as it was a long time since he'd been so comfortable. He was dozing off again when the door opened and Tasha slipped into the room. She was carrying a plate loaded with food and two cans of soda.

"Raided the kitchen" she said as she settled next to him "cold cuts and bread, followed by fresh apples and soda. And then…." She reached in the breast pocket of her shirt and pulled out a small bag "probably the last remaining bag of Hershey's kisses in the state of Georgia"

He grinned and reached for them.

"Probably the last bag in the whole USA" he countered. She held the bag away, keeping it out of his reach.

"Never said I was sharing" she tucked the bag back into her shirt pocket.

After they had eaten they slept again, only waking to the sound of shouts from outside. They found Rick and Glenn standing between Abraham and several of the prisoners. The prisoners were waving guns and yelling and Abraham was trying to push past Glenn to get at the leader.

"He's one of them, he should have been sent out with the others " the self- appointed leader indicated the furious Abraham, then nodded to Bob "him too, he's a soldier"

"He's a medic and you've all been quite happy to have him patching you up" Rick snapped.

"Least he could do after what them soldiers put us through" the man countered.

"If it weren't for our group you'd all still be locked up" Glenn turned from Abraham "Our people risked themselves to get everyone out"

The young woman who had taken care of Judith stepped forward,

"He's right" she argued "look at them two, you can see how beat up they are" she nodded to Daryl and Tasha as they approached the group.

"She's another damn soldier, spent her time strutting around while the rest of us were working." An older woman called from the back of the crowd.

"She bought water to some of the men on the fence, tried to help them" the girl countered "Then got beat up saving the baby"

"Only one I saw do anything for us was her" the leader pointed at Michonne. "She got us weapons and set us free"

"I only got in 'cos he made a distraction, letting himself get caught" Michonne glanced at Daryl. "Then he killed the asshole in charge"

The arguing continued and Tasha pulled Rick to one side.

"Squad of 10 or 12 guys went out day before yesterday, making a run for supplies and survivors. Think they're due back sometime today and if any of them we sent outside survived, they're gonna be pretty pissed and looking for some payback. It might get bloody. Not sure this is the best place to be. We may be better off taking a couple of trucks and some supplies and finding somewhere else, just our group" She glanced at the so called leader of the freed captives as he continued to shout and gesture at the soldiers in the group from Terminus.

"I don't trust him, he wants to be in charge and sees us as a threat. It could turn bad real quick" she finished.

Rick had been thinking the same thing himself, as a Deputy he'd seen people like this man all the time, full of self-importance and unpredictable.

He called the Terminus group over and after a quick discussion they reached a decision. Rick approached the group of freed captives.

"You don't want half our group here and we're not casting them out. We're going to take a couple of the smaller trucks, some supplies and weapons then we're out of here. You'll be able to run this place how you want." He told the man.

The leader was about to object to them taking weapons and supplies when the look on Rick's face stopped him. He realised this was the only way he was going to get rid of them. Grudgingly he agreed.

They selected two trucks and began to load food and other essentials. They took several of the smaller tents and sleeping bags as well as blankets and pillows. After a token row about what weapons they could take they reached an agreement and piled in several rifles and the ammo needed.

They were ready to leave when the young woman who had taken care of Judith approached them.

"I want to come with you" she told them, gazing hopefully at Rick.

"Why, it's not safe on the road, why would you want to leave here?" Maggie asked her in surprise.

"It's not right you feel you have to leave and I've nothing to keep me here but bad memories. I'll be glad to leave it behind" She explained. She was young and pretty and they could all imagine what the bad memories were.

Rick glanced round at the others and got no objection so he nodded and told her to climb into one of the trucks.

"It won't be easy until we find a safe place but you're welcome to come if you're sure." He told her. Her reply was to scramble in the back of one of the trucks and settle next to Carol and Judith.

The gates were opened and the trucks pulled out, Abraham driving one and Rick the other. They left the base without a backward glance.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N Walking Gleek - Thanks for lovely review, I'm glad you're enjoying it. Thanks again to all followers and favouriters.**

**I wrote this chapter before seeing the season 5 trailer and the fact they are heading to DC - great minds think alike and all that. (I wish).**

**October can't come quick enough.**

**xxxx**

Chapter 16

They put several miles distance between themselves and the base before they pulled over on the side of the road.

"We need to make a plan, decide where we're going" Rick announced. Abraham stepped forward.

"It was always my mission to get Eugene to Washington DC. He says he knows what caused the outbreak so we need to get him to what's left of the Government." The red haired soldier looked at them. "I think that's what we should do. Even if there's no government there could still be people"

"Yeah we've done real well with people so far" Daryl muttered. Abraham rounded on him.

"You got something to say, Redneck?" he sneered, getting in Daryl's face. Daryl pushed the bigger man away.

"Just saying last people we met tried to kill us, one's before that wanted to eat us. Be better off just us. Least we know who we can trust" he glared at Abraham, not intimidated by the man's size.

"Hell, least some of us know how to behave round people. Can have a conversation with more than two words and a load of grunts" Abraham pushed at Daryl, shoving him back. "They probably wouldn't let a backward hick like you into DC anyway" Daryl swung a punch at Abraham, he retaliated instantly and the two started brawling, trading blows and insults.

Rosita and Tasha exchanged looks, then decided to leave them to it. They both knew the two men needed to blow off some steam. It was only when Glenn tried to intervene and got knocked on his ass by a wild fist that they stopped. Both men reached a hand down and hurled Glenn back to his feet." They grinned at each other as the younger man brushed himself down, looking embarrassed.

"Can't believe you still aint learned to duck" Daryl smirked at the bruise forming on Glenn's chin.

"Hell, I seen walkers with faster reactions than him" Abraham commented, the fight between them forgotten as they teased Glenn.

"Have you finished now?" Rick asked "Can we make a decision?"

They decided, grudgingly in some cases, to head for DC. It was a journey of almost 700 miles, passing through North and South Carolina as well as across Virginia. They guessed it would take several days to get there and decided to make sure they had enough fuel and supplies before they started.

"We'll find somewhere to hole up for a few days while we stock up on what's needed, then just go for it" Rick announced. Eugene had found a map in the console of one of the trucks and they spread it out on the hood.

Once they had worked out where they were they saw there was a town about 10 miles away. They piled into the trucks. This time Glenn and Daryl drove and Rick sat in the back with Judith. The new girl was there and she gave him a nervous smile.

"Thanks for letting me come with you" she said softly, reaching out to tickle Judith's foot. Rick returned the smile then realised he didn't even know her name. He found out she was called Emma and she'd been taken to the base along with her two older brothers. They had made a failed escape bid and her brothers had been killed by the soldiers. She had been allowed to live but told him that sometimes she had rather they'd killed her with her brothers.

A few miles from the town they pulled the trucks off the road, weaving down a narrow track to a secluded camp site. It was decided they would approach the town on foot and find a car or two to bring any bounty back. The trucks were safe and spacious but the noisy engines would draw attention to them, either walker or human. Beth was to remain behind with Judith, Emma and the still fragile Tara. Abraham didn't want to risk Eugene so he and Rosita said they would stay with him and defend the campsite.

It didn't take long to reach the town; it was small with only one supermarket and a pharmacy. There was also a diner and a bar so the group split up, heading in different directions. Daryl and Michonne set off to find a couple of suitable vehicles to hot wire for the return trip. By the time the others had finished scavenging, finding a decent amount of food and water, there was a small car and a pick-up truck waiting with engines running.

"There's a fuel station up there" Michonne told them. ""Me and Daryl'll take the pick up and get what fuel we can. We'll meet the rest of you back at the trucks" The car was filled and those that didn't fit in it set off on foot, Maggie driving the car slowly behind them.

Michonne drove the pick up to the fuel station and helped Daryl find empty fuel cans. Using a length of pipe they began syphoning the fuel from the station's tanks, storing the full cans in the back of the pick-up.

The others had been back at the camp site for a couple of hours, everything was packed and ready to go as soon as they got the fuel they needed.

"Shouldn't they be back by now?" Carol voiced everyone's concern as they waited for Daryl and Michonne to return.

"Maybe there's a lot of fuel" Glenn wasn't even convincing himself. "They'd get every bit they could"

Tasha paced around the camp site, her worried expression matching Rick's when their eyes met.

"I'm gonna go back" she told him, heading towards the car.

"I'll come with you" Rick turned to Glenn, taking him to one side.

"If we're not back in two hours, take the trucks and follow the original plan, head for DC" He told him. Glenn started to protest.

"You can't go; you've got Carl and Judith. I'll go instead"

The sound of the car racing away stopped them.

"She said she don't need a babysitter, that Rick should stay with his kids and Glenn should be with Maggie" Bob informed them. "She wouldn't let me go with her, I tried but she locked the doors. She also said if she's not back in an hour to leave, she'd catch up if she could."

Tasha raced back towards the town, she knew Michonne and Daryl were probably the most capable members of the group but even they weren't invincible. She drove straight to the fuel station and saw no sign of either of them. The pick-up was parked alongside the pumps, the engine quiet, the full fuel cans still in the back. She drew her gun as she slipped from the car. A familiar shape on the ground caught her eye. Closer inspection confirmed her fears.

It was Daryl's cross bow, broken and abandoned.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

They waited at the campsite for almost two hours before reluctantly making the decision to pull out and head for Washington as planned. They drove slowly, all of them casting glances behind them, hoping to see either the small car or the pick-up racing to catch up with them. They had been on the road for over an hour and were beginning to give up hope.

"There's still a chance isn't there?" Beth muttered to Maggie "Maybe the truck broke down and they had to walk"

Maggie squeezed Beth's hand.

"There's always a chance" she reassured her, not believing it for a second. Her eyes met Glenn's and she could see he felt the same. It had been too long.

Tasha prowled around the fuel station, trying to work out what had happened. There was a blackened, burnt out car on the side of the road, its bodywork still smoking and hot to the touch. The front end was badly damaged, to her experienced military eye it looked like the kind of damage a grenade would cause. Back-tracking away from the wreaked car she found an area of flattened grass as if several people had been standing there and then she spotted the bullet casings from several rifle rounds scattered across the ground. Moving further away from the road and towards the houses she saw scuff marks in the grass as if something had been dragged. There was a dark wet trail alongside the marks. When she touched it her fingers came away red. She was following the trail of blood when she heard voices ahead of her. Quickly she took cover behind a parked car. Two men in army uniform came into view.

"That's gotta be the toughest damn woman I ever saw" one of them commented "bullet in her damn side and she still fights harder than most guys I know" The second soldier was about to reply when they spotted Tasha's car parked by the fuel station. Instantly both were on full alert, weapons raised.

"That weren't there before" Cautiously they approached the small blue car.

"You think it's someone from their group come looking for them?" one asked. The other shrugged

"Don't matter, we'll find whoever this is, the others will get the rest of the group soon, once Will leads them to where they've holed up. We'll get good payback for costing us the base and we've already got the bastard that killed the Major. I'm gonna enjoy making him watch his friends suffer and die before we finish him off" The two men laughed as they peered in the car windows, then started to search the immediate area.

Tasha pressed herself against the car she was hiding behind, it was only a matter of time before they found her. She decided to take a chance and stepped out, hands in the air, gun back in its holster.

"You boy's from the base on the farm?" she called. They both jumped and swung their weapons round., then one of them grinned

"Hey Captain, you made it"

"Am I glad to see you" she smiled "I wasn't sure if there were any other survivors" she lowered her hands and strolled towards them. "You some of the boy's that were out on the run when it all went down?" They relaxed slightly and one of them nodded.

"Yeah we are, got back about an hour after the sons of bitches had left. A few of our guys had made it and told us what happened. We stormed the base and took out all that were left behind, made sure there weren't any left alive. Then we set out to find the rest of the sorry ass group of dicks. Guessed they would head for the nearest town. Most of them were just leaving when we got here so we sent a guy to follow them. He's back and is leading the squad there right now. We'd already managed to grab a couple left behind. Got the jerk that killed the major" the older of the two men was happy to fill her in.

She nodded with approval, glad these two had been away from the base and didn't know of her fall from grace with the major. It was a stroke of luck they hadn't spotted her leaving the town with the others earlier and that she'd left the camp before the others arrived. She hoped Rick and the others had left the campsite like she told them and not waited for her return.

"We'll take you with us and when the others get back we can start the fun" The older man smiled again and indicated for her to follow them. They walked to the edge of the small town until they came to an abandoned school.

An armed man let them in the main door and Tasha followed them down a corridor to a large sports hall. She saw three other soldiers and in the corner, hands cuffed in front of him, she saw a bruised and battered Daryl. Lying on the ground next to him, also cuffed, was an unconscious Michonne. There was blood on her shirt and a puddle of it underneath her still body. Daryl was using the bandana from his pocket and trying desperately to apply pressure to stop the bleeding. She could see the blood seeping through his fingers, but he refused to stop trying. She saw him scan the room, searching for someone or something to help save the bleeding woman's life. His searching eyes met hers and she had to give him credit for not reacting to seeing her there.

"Someone gonna help me stop the bleeding or you just gonna let her die?" he snapped.

"Why the hell should we waste time and resources to save the bitch that blew up our base and killed our men?" One of the soldiers wandered over and kicked at Michonne's body, causing the woman to give a low moan of pain. Daryl leapt to his feet and lunged at the man. He knocked him to the ground and managed to get a couple of good kicks into the man's ribs before he was pulled off. A rifle butt to the small of his back bought him down. Before the soldiers could do any more damage Tasha stepped forward.

"Might be worth saving her" she commented, nudging Michonne's leg with her foot. "From what I could see she was pretty tight with the group's leader. Could be worth having something to hold over him, you know, threaten her to make him co-operate" She knelt at the woman's side and lifted her shirt, checking the injury.

"No exit wound, the bullets still in there. Anyone here got medical training?" The men shook their heads.

"No but we got a medic's field pack, should have what we need in it" the older man that had bought her back handed her a heavy back pack. Ripping it open Tasha found the items she had seen medics use many times on her colleagues when under fire.

"I've never done it before, only watched it a few times" she glanced at Daryl, then at the soldiers.

"You're gonna have to uncuff him, I need him to hold her down. She's less likely to fight if she sees someone she knows restraining her"

"No way are we freeing this bastard. You any idea how hard it was to cuff him in the first place?" A young man, with a clearly broken nose stepped forward.

Tasha gave him a look of disgust.

"You telling me all of you couldn't control one man? What the hell are they showing you in basic training these days?" she sneered.

Exchanging embarrassed looks one of them reached into a pocket and pulled out a key. He waited until all guns were pointed at Daryl then removed the cuffs.

"Lean across her chest, stop her moving her upper body. She twitches at the wrong time and she's in even more trouble" Tasha instructed him. Daryl moved across Michonne's body, pinning her arms against the floor, his weight across her chest, hoping she didn't wake up and find him invading her personal space. He knew she wouldn't be happy. Tasha ordered one of the soldiers to restrain the woman's legs. Grumbling "Why me?" the man lay his rifle on the ground next to Tasha and did as she asked.

Taking a deep breath Tasha cut the excess fabric of Michonne's shirt away from the wound and poured saline solution over the bullet hole, cleaning the blood away. She pulled on a pair of sterile gloves and tore open a sealed pack containing a pair of flat bladed of tweezers. Carefully she inserted the tweezers into the hole and prodded until she hit the bullet. Michonne cried out in agony and tried to twist away as Tasha managed to grip the bullet and remove it.

"It's still in one piece, at least it didn't break up." She dropped the bullet to the floor. Using more saline solution and some gauze she cleaned the wound before stitching it up clumsily.

"Aint pretty but she should be okay now" she pressed a gauze square over the open wound and held it in place with several lengths of tape. As she taped the gauze in place she caught Daryl's eye. She gave a ghost of a smile and her eyes dropped to her hip. He gave a slight nod of understanding.

"All done" she leant back, away from Michonne, turning slightly so the holstered gun at her hip was near Daryl. He let go of Michonne and reached over, ripping the gun free and rolling to the side, firing as he did so. The closest soldier fell. At the same time Tasha snatched up the rifle from the floor next to her, using the butt to stun the man holding Michonne's legs before spinning it round and firing several well aimed shots. Two more men fell. They rolled away from Michonne, moving in opposite directions, making two separate targets. Daryl fired again and the young man with the broken nose dropped.

The man Tasha had hit with the rifle stirred and she turned to finish him off. Taking advantage of her distraction the older man aimed his weapon at her.

"Damn traitorous bitch" he snarled as he fired. Daryl crashed into her, knocking her to one side as he fired at the man, killing him. Tasha heard him give a grunt of pain as she regained her feet. He had dropped the hand gun and was clutching his arm, cursing as he looked at the gunshot wound there. Tasha dropped to his side, reaching for his arm.

"Crazy son of a bitch" she glared at him "What'd have to go and do that for?" He gave her a pain filled smirk.

"Someone's gotta look out for your ass" he muttered through clenched teeth.

She pulled his vest and jacket from his arm, checking the damage.

"Entry and exit wound, bullet went right through" She reached for the medical backpack, dragging it over.

A sudden single gunshot startled both of them. Tasha grabbed the rifle and twisted round in time to see the man who had been guarding the main door sink slowly to his knees, a look of surprise on his face as he toppled forward, dropping his rifle.

"Maybe you two should stop making eyes at each other and pay more attention" Michonne was propped up on one arm holding the gun Daryl had dropped, hands still cuffed together. With a flinch of pain she lowered the gun and sank down again, biting at her bottom lip. Tasha rummaged in the med bag and found some painkillers.

"Here, take these" she handed two tablets over and Michonne choked them down.

"We should get out of here, we don't know when the rest of these skumbags are gonna get back" Tasha picked up the medical bag and swung it over her shoulder.

"I'll patch you up when we're safe" she told Daryl.

Between them they helped Michonne to her feet and with her arms draped over their shoulders they managed to get her outside. Leaving the two of them out of sight Tasha made a dash for the car she'd left by the fuel station. When she arrived back at the school she settled Michonne on the back seat and got Daryl into the front passenger side. She then made a quick trip back inside and collected up all the weapons and ammo, including Michonne's katana, as well as anything else she felt they could use. She also found the key for the handcuffs holding Michonne. Once the car was loaded and Michonne's hands were free she drove away from the town determined to catch up with the others as soon as possible.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N INS is a genuine systems used by the military. It is a lot more technical than I've made it out to be and probably doesn't even work in the way I am using it. I am just using it to my own ends. I also apologise for any geographical errors and any inaccuracies regarding the US army and it's bases. I'm English and have to rely on Google for my information.**

**Thanks for reading.**

**xxx**

Chapter 18

Will lead the remains of the squadron through the trees to the campsite where he'd last seen the trucks. He was hoping this would be his chance to prove himself, he was tired of being the butt of all the jokes and teasing just because he was the youngest in the group. At barely 20 he'd only just finished his basic training when the world went to hell and was considered the baby, almost a liability. He'd been pleased and surprised when he was the one ordered to follow the bastards that had destroyed the base back to their camp. He'd reported back and now they were on their way with heavy weapons, ready to get a little payback.

Weapons ready they pushed into the clearing only to find it empty.

"Thought you said they were here" Their new leader, Jack Spencer complained, no one really liked or respected him he was just the highest ranking officer left.

"They were" Will stared at the empty space, noting the flattened grass and tire tracks leading back towards the road.

"I guess they didn't wait for their friends to make it back"

Spencer gave him a shove "So how we gonna find them now?" he whined "won't be able to follow the tracks once they reach the road"

Will allowed himself a smug smile.

"Don't matter, we can just follow them using the tracker I planted on one of the trucks" he told them.

"You can't be that dumb, boy" Spencer sneered "How the hell we gonna follow a tracker with no satellites for the GPS?"

Will pulled a mobile phone from his pocket.

"I used an INS tracker. As long as I can keep this charged I can follow them" he explained

"Used a what?" one of the others asked.

"INS, Inertial navigation system, works using gyroscopes and accelerometers, works out how far it's gone and in what direction. It was fairly new before all this happened" He showed them the display on the phone "see that dot, that's where they are"

With a whoop of delight the men headed back to where they had parked their vehicles. They would return to the school and collect the rest of their men and the two prisoners then the hunt would be on.

Rick climbed from the cab and stretched his back. They had been driving for several hours now and all needed a break. They were still reeling from the loss of Michonne, Daryl and Tasha, no one really felt like eating but they forced themselves to try. They knew they had to keep their strength up. It was decided they would rest up for a couple of hours then continue the journey to Washington.

Emma whispered something to Rosita and the two women got up and headed towards the trees, Rosita making sure she had her gun.

"Where you two going?" Abraham demanded loudly. "Shouldn't be wandering off on your own" Rosita rolled her eyes.

"Where you think we're going?" she snapped "Don't worry, I got my gun, we're not going far and we won't be long" the two women disappeared into the trees.

It was Eugene who noticed the noise first.

"Can anyone else hear that?" he asked, looking around him "It sounds like something large in the trees" Instantly Abraham was on his feet, pulling Eugene behind him, determined to keep him safe. The others got to their feet, pulling out their various weapons. They formed a lose circle, back to back. Beth held on to Judith, keeping her safe in the centre of the circle. There were two sudden flashes of light, instantly followed by loud bangs. For a few seconds none of them could see anything, their hearing was distorted and they were disorientated and confused by the stun grenades thrown in their midst.

Rick felt hands grab at his rifle and he pulled back, managing to keep hold of it. He could hear the others shouting and loud strange voices demanding they surrender. He shook his head to clear it, eyes searching for Carl. He saw his son being pinned to the ground by a man in military fatigues and turned to help him. A soft scream made him look around and he saw Beth struggling desperately, trying to stop another man from pulling the baby from her arms. She managed to twist free and kicked out at the man, aiming for his groin.

"Bet Daryl taught her that" Rick's confused brain thought. He raised his gun and fired, his aim was off and he only managed to hit the man in the leg but it was enough to bring him down and give Beth time to run, still clutching Judith. He saw Carol and Tara fending off another soldier. Abraham shot and killed another but three more rushed him and overpowered him, disarming and bringing the big man down. Eugene was captured easily. Maggie and Glenn were side by side as ever, backs against one of the trucks as they fought off the attackers. Bob had pushed Sasha behind him and was using his now empty gun as a club, wildly swinging it. Tyreese was at his side his big fists flying as he defended his sister. Rick reached the man pinning his son and hurled him to his feet. He tried to throw him to one side so he could get a clear shot but the man lashed out, knocking the gun to one side, his fist connecting with Rick's jaw. Rick didn't fall but his head spun and a rush of dizziness almost made him stumble. Blindly he swung back but the man dodged easily and punched him in the stomach. This time he did go down.

The group fought desperately but the soldiers were organised and better trained in hand to hand combat and it wasn't long before they were all subdued and held at gunpoint. Their hands were bound behind them with zip ties and they were forced into their own trucks. As Rick was shoved forward one of the soldiers leaned close to him.

"We're gonna make you pay for what you did. Your friends are already dead. He was screaming like a little girl by the time we'd finished with him and as for her, well it's amazing what you can do with a fancy, big, sharp sword." The man laughed as Rick lunged at him. He kicked Rick's legs out from under him and kicked him hard in the ribs, laughing again at the man's cry of pain and frustration. He swung his leg back planning to kick again when a shot rang out and he fell, a bullet to the back of his head. The soldiers spun round, searching for the new threat. Rosita was standing at the edge of the trees her rifle aimed towards them, Emma standing nervously behind her.

"Step away from the trucks" she demanded, trying to hide the nervousness in her voice. The soldiers laughed.

"You gonna shoot all of us, pretty lady?" one sneered as he took a few steps in her direction. She fired and he fell clutching his shoulder.

"Bitch!" he exclaimed as Abraham gave a snort of laughter from the truck.

"That's my girl" He muttered proudly.

"You head away from us and I won't shot anymore of you" Rosita stated calmly "Leave and don't …." A pained look of surprise crossed her face and the rifle slipped from her grip. Abraham gave a yell of rage as she slumped face down to the ground. Emma threw the branch she had used to hit Rosita with to one side as she ran towards one of the soldiers, throwing herself into his arms.

"Hi little sister" he laughed "Knew you'd make it somehow"

"You know me, Jack" she hugged him tight "I'm a survivor" she watched as Rosita was tied up and shoved in the back of the truck. Her eyes caught Rick's as he was pulled to his feet. She shrugged her shoulders at his look of disappointment and betrayal.

"What can I say" she told him ruefully "Guess you just can't trust anyone these days"

With two armed soldiers in the back of each truck and another driving they headed back to the main road. The others returned to their own vehicles before meeting up and travelling in a small convoy.

The soldiers were telling Sasha what she and the other women could look forward to when they reached their destination when Bob lurched toward them. Somehow he had managed to get his hands free and he threw himself at one of the men, trying desperately to reach his gun. Sasha screamed as the gun went off, deafening them all in the enclosed space of the truck. Bob dropped to the floor a puzzled expression on his face. His hands went to this stomach and came away covered in blood. The truck slammed to a halt and the back door was ripped open.

"What the hell?" Spencer demanded. He saw the injured Bob "How'd he get free?" He reached up and pulled the medic from the truck, leaving him in a heap on the road.

"Gut shot, he aint gonna make it" he decided "We'll leave him here, no point taking a corpse with us" He instructed another man to ride in the back "Try not to kill any more, we want them alive when we get to Fort Jackson" He slammed the door, shutting out the sounds of Sasha crying and the yells of protest from the others.

He turned to Bob.

"You're the lucky one, dying like this" he told him "Aint gonna be as quick or easy for the rest of 'em" Leaving him fatally wounded on the side of the road the convoy moved off.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N Really short chapter but you'll see why. **

**WARNING for character death - sorry.**

Chapter 19

Bob didn't know how long he'd been laying there. He no longer hurt, a kind of dull numbness had set in. He was aware he was cold and so very tired. He decided he would just let himself drift off to sleep. He vaguely thought he heard something but was too tired to know for sure. Blackness was about to overtake him when he felt a gentle touch on his face and a familiar voice calling his name.

"Damn it Bob, stay with me. This aint the time to be nodding off" He forced his eyes open and saw Tasha's concerned face gazing down at him. Behind her he saw Daryl, his arm bandaged but otherwise alive and well.

"They said you was dead" he mumbled, managing a grin at the hunter. Daryl knelt next to him.

"Who said that? Who did this to you and where are the others?" Daryl fired questions at him, as Tasha pushed him away.

"Not yet, let me check him over first" she lifted Bob's shirt and tried not to react at the sight of his torn apart stomach.

Bob pushed her hands away.

"Can't do nothing for me now" he told her "You need to help the others. Soldiers took them, heading for Fort Jackson, said they want to punish them for taking the base. That girl, Emma, she's one of them, hurt Rosita" his breathing hitched, then slowed and he swallowed hard "Find them, help them and tell Sasha, tell her I'm sorry, tell her I should of told her before that I….." his face twisted as a spasm of pain hit him, Tasha grabbed his hand, gripping it tightly.

"Don't talk, just rest. I know what you're trying to say and you can tell her yourself when we get her back" she fought to keep her voice steady as he faded in front of her. He managed another small smile.

"We both know that's not going to happen" he tightened his grip on her hand "promise me you'll find them and please … don't let me turn" he pleaded.

"I promise" Tasha sat on the road and rested his head in her lap, not letting go of his hand, stroking his cheek with her free hand. She felt his body shudder once and his hand slipped from hers. She reached down and gently closed his eyes, letting the tears fall. She heard Daryl curse behind her as he turned away, scrubbing his hand across his face awkwardly. She sat there for a few minutes then took a deep breath and gently lowered Bob's head to the ground. Daryl held out his hand and pulled her to her feet.

"You okay?" he asked softly. She looked up at him, her face full of fury, her eyes blazing.

"I'm going to Fort Jackson, they aint getting away with this. I'm getting our people back and I'm going to finish this once and for all" He stared at her for a few seconds.

"No" he told her firmly "We're going to Fort Jackson and we're gonna make those bastards pay"

**A/N Poor Bob - Hope that wasn't too cheesy - please let me know what you thought.**

**Thanks**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

They had no way of burying Bob but they couldn't just leave him exposed on the road. Daryl used a knife to make sure the medic didn't come back and they moved his body to the edge of the trees. They laid him out and covered him with leaves and moss. Daryl made a crude cross with two sticks, lashing them together with a piece of fabric torn from Bob's shirt. It wasn't much but it was the best they could do. Michonne insisted on leaving the car so she could pay her last respects and the three of them stood silently by the makeshift grave. None of them were particularly religious and didn't know the right words to say so they said nothing. Finally they turned away and headed for the car.

"It aint right, he was a good man" Michonne muttered as she limped back to the car. She was out of danger but her side was still painful and left her vulnerable. Daryl's injured arm was another liability and he was still complaining about the loss of his crossbow.

"Damn bastards stunned us with a grenade, blew up a damn car, then grabbed us." He explained to Tasha how they'd been captured. "Managed to get my crossbow off me and one of them stamped on it, bastard broke it. Shot Michonne when she made a break for it, cuffed us both and dragged us to that damn school. Gotta say I was pleased to see you when you finally turned up"

She flashed him a small smile and gave him an unexpected kiss on the cheek.

"You can show me how pleased you were to see me later, we aint got time for that now. Need to make a plan." She heard Michonne give a small snort of laughter and saw him turn away from both women.

"I do believe you made him blush" Michonne joked "It's real cute"

He turned long enough to glare at her, then grabbed a rifle and started to check it over, refusing to look at either of them.

Tasha got serious.

"Fort Jackson is in Columbia, it's pretty much on the way to Washington. It was one of the biggest bases in the US for basic training. It's a massive site, loads of buildings. Unless we get lucky it's gonna be real hard to find where they're keeping our people" she thought for a few minutes.

"We may have to watch for a while, maybe see if we can capture one of theirs, make them talk"

"I can do that" Daryl said darkly. Tasha didn't doubt it.

They had been following the road to Washington when they had come across Bob, hoping to catch up with the group so it didn't take long to reach the suburbs of Columbia. They chose a house a few miles from Fort Jackson made sure it was clear and moved in. They managed to scrape together enough food for a quick meal, then rested until nightfall.

Tasha raided the closet in the bedroom, finding a pair of black jeans and a dark blue hooded jacket. Quickly she changed, tucking her light hair under the hood and once it was fully dark she slipped out of the house and headed towards the army base. She didn't tell the others she was going as she didn't want them to follow her. They were both injured and needed time to regain their strength. The fact that she managed to slip from the house without Daryl noticing was proof enough to her that he wasn't at the top of his game. She took out walkers with her knife when she needed to and dodged others when she could. She didn't want to leave a trail of bodies behind her.

It wasn't long until the fences guarding the base came into view. She watched for a while but saw nothing. Eventually she made her way around the perimeter until she reached the main gates. They were pushed closed and she could see a shiny new padlock and chain holding them together. Staying hidden she prowled further along the edge of the base. In the darkness she could see lights in some of the windows and realised it wouldn't be as hard as she thought to find the rest of the group. She saw no sign of any guards but wasn't surprised. If she had been holed up here she would have posted guards out of sight in buildings. No point in announcing your presence to anyone passing by. She doubled back, heading back the way she'd come. Eventually she found a spot she felt happy enough with to climb over the fence. There were buildings nearby but none with windows overlooking the barrier.

Once she was inside the perimeter she kept to the shadows and approached the first building with lights at the windows. The sound of men's laughter reached her and she peered through a window. Several soldiers sat around a table, eating and drinking. They were happy and relaxed, she wished she had a grenade. She checked out the other buildings with lights and found only rest rooms and sleeping quarters for the soldiers. There was no sign of Rick or the others. She ducked back when she heard the sound of a baby crying. Emma left one of the large storage buildings, Judith in her arms.

"You need to just forget about your daddy, you got yourself a new mamma now" she cooed at the fretting child, as she entered the sleeping quarters. Tasha's hand twitched on her gun, resisting the urge to take out the deceitful woman and claim Judith back. Now wasn't the time and least it looked like Judith would be safe. Shouting and crashing from the storage building caught her attention. She now knew where the prisoners were being kept. She heard Rick demanding his daughter back and the jeers and laughs of the soldiers as they told him he would never see her again. There was the sound of a scuffle, more yelling then a final yelp. She jumped back as the door opened and two soldiers exited the building.

"That lot are gonna be a handful. Going to have fun with them" one of them commented as they passed her, heading for the sleeping quarters.

She knew there was nothing she could do that night, she was alone with limited weapons. She climbed the fence and headed back to the house. It was time to plan. The three of them would be back and then there would be hell to pay.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N Only a couple more chapters to go, thanks for sticking with this. Things are looking pretty bad for the gang.**

**To the guest reviewer who commented on my use of the work 'aint' Thank you for your comments. I'm sorry you feel I'm using it too much. I see your point about Michonne but as far as I can see I've only made her say it once at a time when she was injured and had just buried a friend, I'm hoping we can excuse her lapse in grammar due to stressful circumstances ;) As for Tasha I'm going with the fact she was an officer when the world was right but now after a year or two of chaos she is reverting to how she was before the army. I'll try not to use it so much in future. Thanks again, I really appreciate all comments, good or bad. **

**Sorry to ramble here but can't respond any other way to a guest review.**

**Thanks to everyone else for reviewing, following and favouriting.**

**xxxx**

Chapter 21

It was still dark when the soldiers came for them, sometime in the early hours of the morning. They were separated and taken to different rooms. Carl and Rick were taken to a small room and the ties holding Carl were removed and replaced with a set of cuffs. The cuffs were then attached to a pipe running down the wall. Rick was also cuffed but his arms were forced above his head and he was suspended from a wooden beam in the ceiling by a length of chain looped around his wrists. Three soldiers were in the room with them, including the one he now knew was the leader, the one called Spencer. He stood back and watched as the other two took turns to punch Rick, hitting him in the face and stomach. When he didn't make a sound they ripped open his shirt and stubbed cigarette butts out on his back and sides. Rick heard Carl struggling to free himself and forced himself to look at his son. He could see the boy was fighting to hold back tears, the child still in him suddenly so obvious as he was forced to see his helpless father beaten and tortured.

"Carl, stay strong" he told him "It'll be okay" Carl met his eyes and stood up straighter, putting on a brave face.

Spencer walked over to him.

"Brave kid" he commented, peering down at the chained boy. "But big enough to take part in killing our men, that makes him big enough to take the punishment." He swung his fist, catching Carl on the jaw, sending him crashing back against the wall.

"No!" Rick screamed, twisting frantically as he tried to reach his son "Leave him alone. Take it out on me, don't hurt him"

Spencer gave a cold smile and his fist flashed out again.

Maggie and Glenn heard Rick scream out from the next room. They exchanged frightened looks. Their hands were still tied behind them and they were standing back to back, watching the two soldiers circling them. With a grin one of them reached out and grabbed Maggie, pulling her towards him.

"How the hell did a runt like you get a woman as fine as this?" he sneered at Glenn.

"Don't touch her!" Glenn hurled himself at the man holding his wife. Before he could reach him the second soldier stepped forward and threw a punch, catching Glenn in the ribs and lifting the smaller man off his feet. Maggie cried out as the big soldier kicked Glenn hard in the stomach. The soldier reached down, grabbing Glenn's shirt and yanking him to his feet.

"Stay on your feet" he snarled. The man holding Maggie let go of her, shoving her to the side as they both started hitting the defenceless man. Every time he fell they pulled him back up until he could no longer stand by himself. Maggie charged one of the men, hitting him with her shoulder, both of them crashing to the ground.

"Hell she can't wait to get a real man. Look at her throwing herself at me" The men laughed and pushed the sobbing woman to one side before turning they turned their attention to Glenn again.

"Wait!" Maggie cried out "You want me you can have me just leave him alone, don't hurt him anymore"

Glenn weakly raised his head, protesting at what she was saying.

The two men looked at each other, then looked Maggie over.

"You gotta deal" The older of the two grabbed her arm and started to pull her from the room.

"Going to find somewhere a little more private" he winked at the remaining man. Glenn watched helplessly as Maggie was dragged away from him. The door closed behind her and he slumped down, letting the blackness take him.

The soldier that had taken Beth from the room with the others had spent a long time telling her she was too pretty and that was why the major had wanted her for himself. She had distracted the major and that was one of the reasons the base fell. He was going to change that. If she was no longer pretty she couldn't distract anyone else. He pulled out his knife and advanced on her. She backed away as far as she could until her back hit the wall. As he reached out and grabbed her hair, forcing her head back Beth could almost hear Daryl's voice, that day in the forest when he was teaching her how to survive on her own.

_"__You ever need to get away from a man you gotta aim for the delicate bits. __A knee in the balls'll soon make him let go of yer" _

She bought her knee up as hard as she could, making contact. The man let go of her hair and doubled over and she bought her knee up again, smacking him in the face. She pushed past him and made a run for the door. She had no idea how she was going to get away, her hands were still bound behind her. She cried out as a hand gripped her ankle and her foot was pulled out from under her. She hit the floor hard and felt the man gripping her legs as she twisted and fought to get away.

"You're gonna regret doing that" he snarled as he reached for his dropped knife. She was aware of the door opening, then a soft cry. The weight on her legs fell away and she heard a familiar voice.

"You alright Beth?" She scrambled to her feet, smiling broadly when she saw Michonne leaning on the door frame, katana in hand. The man was on the floor, his head no longer attached. Michonne cut through the ties holding Beth and the girl couldn't resist giving the older woman a tight hug.

"They told us you were dead. Told us they'd killed you and Daryl" She pulled away as she saw Michonne flinch, her hand going to her side.

"They tried, Tasha arrived just in time to patch me up and we got out of there."

"How bad is it?" Beth indicated Michonne's side.

"Took a load of painkillers and strapped it up tight. I'll be okay" Michonne grasped her katana and straightened up. Beth didn't miss the grimace that crossed her face.

"Come on, we need to find the others"

Beth picked up the soldiers knife and the two of them headed out the door.

Glenn managed to lift his head as Maggie was shoved back into the room. The soldier left with him hadn't kept to his side of the deal and had passed the time tormenting and hitting Glenn as he lay motionless and numb, trying not to think about what was happening to Maggie.

She had her head down and was unresisting as the soldier pushed her forward.

"Took your damn time" the man moved toward them, frowning when his colleague didn't speak, wondering briefly why he kept his head down and why his cap pulled over his face. The soldier let go of Maggie and there was a blur of movement as he raised his head.

The last thing the man saw as the knife embedded itself in his throat was a pair of piercing blue eyes, staring coldly at him.

Maggie ran to Glenn, pulling him into her arms as he tried to understand what had just happened. The soldier dropped next to him, pulling off the cap and cutting through the ties that held Glenn's wrists. It took the battered man a few seconds to realise the soldier was Daryl.

"Daryl and Tasha killed the guard that took me before he could touch me. Daryl took his uniform so we could get back in here and free you." Maggie explained as she helped Glenn to sit up. With difficulty Glenn reached out and grabbed Daryl's arm.

"Thank you" he managed to croak out "Thank you for saving her"

Daryl shrugged.

"Did what was needed" He got to his feet "Gotta get out there and find the rest. You two need to find somewhere to hide out 'till it's over"

Glenn pulled himself up.

"No, we're coming with you. There's too many for just you and Tasha" Glenn took a few steps and almost fell.

Daryl rolled his eyes.

"You aint in any state to help. Best to keep out the way so we don't have to look out for yer ass" He handed Maggie one of the guns taken from the dead soldiers.

"We got Michonne as well and she's pretty pissed" he flashed them a small smile "They don't stand a chance"


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Tyreese and Abraham were taken from the holding area and lead through corridors until they reached a small courtyard. Their hands were freed and they were shoved forward, three guns held on them.

"Figured a couple of big guys like you would put on a good show" one of the soldiers commented.

"We're not gonna fight each other to please you sorry sons of bitches" Abraham snarled.

"Guessed you'd say that so we thought you'd like a little incentive." The soldier nodded and Will appeared, Rosita and Sasha in front of him as he held his gun on them. They were shoved back to back and their bound hands tied to each other, restricting their movements. A gate in the fence surrounding the courtyard was opened and a truck backed up to it. The rear door was opened and three walkers stumbled out, before the door was slammed shut again.

"You're gonna have to fight them if you want to save your women" The soldiers, including Will, retreated to the other side of the fence and waited for the fun to start.

Tyreese and Abraham placed themselves between the two women and the walkers. As the walkers approached Abraham reached out and caught one by the remains of its shirt. He twisted it round and threw it to the ground, quickly stamping on its decaying skull. Tyreese punched the next one knocking it backwards. He grabbed it by the hair and slammed its head repeatedly against a metal fence post. Finally it stopped moving. The third had got past the two men and headed for the women. It reached for Rosita, arms outstretched, fingers grasping. Bracing her back against Sasha's she got her foot against its chest and pushed it away. It stumbled back a few steps and reached for her again. She pushed it back once more and this time Abraham grabbed it and finished it off.

"Not bad" One of the soldiers admitted "But let's see how you do against a few more" The truck door was opened again and this time six walkers ambled out. They headed straight for the trapped group. Abraham and Tyreese did their best, they fought hard and desperately but they couldn't hold them all back. One of them grabbed Sasha's arm and pulled her towards it. It's mouth opened and it's yellowing teeth were about to close on her flesh when a shot rang out and it fell backwards. A second shot took out the walker reaching for Tyreese's back as he held off two others.

"There, she's up on the roof" Will was the first to spot the sniper as another walker fell to the precise shooting. The soldiers opened fire towards the roof, causing the figure up there to drop down out of sight. Abraham and Tyreese took out another walker each, leaving just one. It was heading for Sasha. With a cry of anger she leant against Rosita's back and bought both her legs up to her chest, pushing them out she caught the decaying creature in the chest with her feet and knocked it down. Before it could struggle back up both men fell on it and pounded its head into the ground. The soldiers turned and raised their guns, aiming at the four trapped in the yard.

Another soldier stepped through the door and raised his gun. Before the others could react he opened fire. Two of the soldiers died instantly. A shot from the roof took out the third, leaving Will and the driver of the truck standing. Abraham made a dash for the driver, dodging past the still open truck. The man fired as Abraham reached him. The bullet passed through the Abraham's leg but instead of stopping him it seemed to enrage him more. The driver didn't stand a chance.

Will's eyes widened as he recognised the soldier who had just killed his comrades.

"You're one of their group. The one we caught at the fuel station" He lowered his gun and stood up straight, resigned to his fate. He didn't flinch when the gun was raised and didn't feel bullet that ended his life.

Daryl lowered the gun, he didn't feel good about shooting the kid but it had to be done. He used his knife to free Sasha and Rosita's hands and they ran to Abraham. He was on his feet and limping towards them as Tasha appeared from the building she had been shooting from. Tyreese engulfed her in a huge hug.

"Damn, we're real pleased to see you two" he grinned at her.

She returned the grin.

"Ran into Michonne, she's got Beth and they were heading to the holding area to find Carol, Tara and Eugene" she told them.

"Glenn and Maggie are okay. Glenn's had the crap kicked out of him but he'll live. I told them to find a safe place 'till we came for them." Daryl explained. He hesitated "Any know about Rick and Carl, not seen a sign of them yet?"

"They took them first, kept them together. Two soldiers and the new leader, some jerk called Spencer" Tyreese informed them. "That girl, Emma, she took Judith"

"She thinks she's Judith's new mama." Tasha shook her head "saw her taking the baby into the sleeping quarters."

Rosita collected a gun from a fallen soldier.

"I got that one, I owe that bitch" she rubbed the back of her head, feeling the large lump from the blow Emma had given her.

"I'll back you up" Tyreese stepped behind her. Sasha went to object but Tyreese stopped her.

"You need to get Abraham back to the others. I know he's a tough guy but he needs to get off that leg."

Reluctantly Sasha agreed and she went to Abraham, letting him lean on her as they made their way to the room they had all been held in when they first arrived. As they passed Daryl Abraham stopped.

"Hey redneck" he called "glad to see you're not dead"

"Makes two of us" Daryl muttered as the man limped off.

Spencer had ordered Rick pulled down from the beam. The soldiers had spent a gleeful few minutes breaking some of his fingers when the door opened. The leader's eyes lit up when he saw Tasha pushed into the room by a soldier, his gun pressed against her back. He was so pleased to see her he didn't notice the cap pulled down over the soldiers face. Her arms were behind her and she had a fresh cut on her cheek and a split lip. Her head was down and she looked defeated. Carl gave a small cry of dismay when he saw her and she looked over to him. She took in the cuts and bruises on his face and turned to Spencer.

"You feel like a big man when you beat up kids?" she stared at him.

He sneered at her "I was hoping to run into you again. When we've finished here I'll be able to spend a lot of time with you. What you did back at the base makes you a traitor to your uniform"

"And you're a disgrace to yours" she retorted.

He laughed and ordered the man holding her to bring her forward so they could tie her to the same beam Rick had been fastened to.

"Don't think so" the soldier responded. Spencer looked at him in disbelief.

"Are you disobeying a direct order?" he asked

"Guess so" the soldier raised his head and swung his gun round and shot one of the men holding Rick. Tasha's hands came from behind her and she fired the hand gun she had concealed there. The second man dropped. Spencer tried to bring his own weapon up but Daryl was too fast for him. He punched him hard, sending him down, then kicked his weapon away from him.

Tasha dropped to Rick's side. He was barely conscious, his face bleeding and swollen, one eye closed. She could see the bruises and burns on his torso and hear his breathing rasping in his chest. Daryl searched Spencer and found the keys for the cuffs holding Carl and Rick and threw them to Tasha. She left Rick long enough to free Carl and give him a quick hug which he returned tightly. She returned to Rick, draping his arm over her shoulders and helping him to his feet. He struggled to face Spencer.

"Give me a gun" he demanded "He's got to pay for hurting Carl" Daryl nodded and left Spencer on the floor. He passed Rick a hand gun. Ricks broken fingers made it all but impossible for him to hold the weapon and he made a frustrated sound.

A shot filled the air and Spencer's body jerked then lay still. Carl stepped forward, Tasha's gun still in his hands. She hadn't even noticed him take it from her holster as she tended to Rick.

Carefully she reached over and took it from the shaking boy. Letting Daryl take Rick she pulled Carl to her. He looked up at her with blank eyes.

"I had to do it, he hurt Dad, let that woman take Judith" he told her.

"It's okay, I understand" she held him for a few seconds more then released him.

"Come on let's get your Dad some medical help" she headed for the door.

"Then we'll go help Rosita and Tyreese find Judith"

**Thanks for reading , last chapter up tomorrow.**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N Last Chapter - I hope it ties everything up okay.**

**Enjoy**

**xxx**

Chapter 23

Slowly and painfully they made their way to the room where the others were waiting. Everyone was there apart from Tyreese and Rosita. Carol hurried over to tend to Rick as best she could.

Michonne glanced at Tasha, taking in her injured face.

"What happened to you, who did that?" she indicated the cuts.

"Rosita" Tasha said simply.

"Why?" Michonne was incredulous.

"Cos him and Tyreese wouldn't" Tasha nodded towards Daryl. "I thought if I was going to be a prisoner it would be more realistic if it looked like I'd resisted. Rosita was the only one that would hit me. In fact she did it twice, I think she enjoyed it a bit too much" Tasha rubbed her jaw "For a small woman she packs quite a punch."

"I don't envy Emma if she puts up a fight for Judith" Michonne settled back on the floor her back against the wall as she tried to make herself comfortable. Her injured side was throbbing and she was sure she'd ripped the stitches out. Abraham was already sitting, his leg elevated, cleaned and stitched by Carol while they waited for the others to return. Maggie was cleaning Glenn's wounds and covering the worse cuts with gauze pads, taping them in place. They had raided the base and the soldier's supplies finding food and medical equipment and were making full use of it.

Daryl was pacing the room, finally he approached Tasha.

"They're taking too long, I'm gonna go look for asskicker" He grabbed a gun, not waiting for her to reply. Before she could snatch up a weapon of her own the door opened and Tyreese came in, clutching a contended Judith. Rosita followed him in, battered but with a satisfied expression on her face.

"She's not going to be bothering anyone ever again" she told them, as Tyreese handed Judith to Carl. He took her to Rick, showing his father she was fine. He managed to shoot a grateful look at the two of them before Carol made him lay back so she could check his ribs.

They were all very aware of Bob's absence and Daryl left it to Tasha to take Sasha to one side and tell her Bob's final words for her. He turned away as the woman cried into Tyreese's comforting embrace and Tasha left the room, running her fingers through her long hair. He knew she needed some space.

They stayed on the base for almost two weeks until the injured had at least recovered enough to travel. They took three trucks, filling them with as much as they could find. The base still had a lot of canned food and bottled water, as well as fuel and medical supplies. Once they left they knew they would have more than enough to last the journey and to keep them going for a while once they reached DC. None of them knew what to expect when they arrived so they wanted to be prepared.

They drove slowly and stopped a lot, Rick was still hurting and the bouncing of the truck wasn't helping his recovery. Carol had restitched Michonne's side and made her rest as much as possible. Abraham's leg and Daryl's arm were healing well and not slowing either of them up much. Glenn still looked a mess but was getting better every day. He wouldn't let Maggie out of his sight.

Finally, four days after leaving the base they pulled over for one last time and climbed out of the trucks. They stood in a group on the road, staring ahead, taking in the distant Washington Memorial close to the banks of the Potomac River, seeing the elegant arches of the Arlington Memorial Bridge.

"We don't know what we're going to find in there" Rick looked at each one of them "are we all sure it's what we want to do?"

Daryl hated the idea of going into a city, he was never comfortable in built up areas but he knew it was the right thing to do. At least he could see trees and a lot of park like areas near the river, maybe it wouldn't be too bad. Tasha sensed his hesitation and grasped his hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. He glanced at her as she smiled up at him. He decided he could do this and nodded his agreement at Rick's questioning glance.

"Let's do it" he stated.

They climbed back into the trucks and set off again. It wasn't long before they passed a large sign, set in its own brick built surrounding.

"Welcome To Washington DC"

They had arrived.

END

**A/N Please excuse any inaccuracies in describing Washington DC, as a Brit whose sadly never been there I had to use Google maps and improvise a little. I hope I'm not too far out.**

**I have a few ideas for a sequel , please let me know if you think it's worth me carrying on.**

**Thanks for taking the time to read Escape and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it. **

**I'm working on a new 'epic' and will hopefully be posting it soon.**

**xxxxx**


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